Prince of Hearts
by BlendInTheDarkness
Summary: Torn from his simple life in his hometown, Sora is declared to be related to the Hearts family. Escorted by 3 strangers hundreds of miles across the country, will he ever make it to his seat at the throne? And with secrets at every turn, who can he trust?
1. Spilled Coffee

**Okay, so I've been planning this and writing it for a while, BUT- it's not completed. I hate posting things that aren't completed yet, but I needed a break from Letters from a Loved One.**

**I'm taking a break from my usual characters of Roxas and Axel- yes, they will be in here, but there will also be a collection of some of the rest of the KH cast.**

**Also- the time setting of this is very confusing. It's a modern world, but outside of the town that Sora lives in, the areas of land are ruled by different kingdoms- with kings, queens, princes, princesses; all that jazz. If you feel that it makes no sense, remember; this is fan**_**fiction**_**- my fics can contain anything I want them to.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything, except for my own made-up fantasies.**

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Sora Stefens pulled his coat around himself, bracing against the chilly air. He spotted a bright neon sign shining down the street and eagerly picked up his pace. The sign was now visible and said _Cocoa Caf__é_. He stepped inside the brightly lit café, the door chiming behind him. He strode to the counter, clutching a crumpled five dollar bill.

"Hi," a cheerful brunette greeted from behind the counter. "What would you like?"

"Um…" Sora began, peering at the menu. "I'll get some coffee with whipped cream. Please and thank you!" he added cheerfully. The counter-girl nodded and turned towards the coffee machine.

"Nice weather we're having, huh?" she said with a smile.

Sora laughed brightly. "Yeah," he agreed. "It only gets better."

"Well," the brunette said, delicately putting the whipped cream on his hot drink. "Here ya go. That'll be $3.50." Sora held out his money and eagerly grabbed the coffee. He licked the whipped cream off like he usually did, getting a smudge of the delicious treat on his nose. The counter-girl handed him his change and giggled, handing him some napkins.

"You might need these."

"Oh! Thank you…" Sora looked at her nametag, "Sara."

The brunette, Sara, smiled. "Bye!" she said, waving. "Have a nice day!" Sora stepped out of the warm café, smiling contentedly.

Life didn't get much better than this.

Little did he know, his life was about to be turned upside-down.

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Sora set off down the street, not at all afraid of the dark alleys. Humming a random tune, he started the half-mile trek back to his house. A chilly breeze blew by, causing him to stop to zipper his coat. Placing his coffee on the ground, a voice suddenly spoke from the shadows beside him.

"Hey, you."

Sora let out a shriek of surprise, successfully tipping his drink over. Startled, he looked down at his soaked shoe, not realizing that five figures were surrounding him. Looking up at the black-clad strangers, he whimpered quietly, trying to find a way out of his tight spot. One of the taller men laughed, his deep voice echoing in the long street.

"Can you believe it's this guy?" The group of other guys around him laughed, making snide comments about the brunette.

"He's so weak!"

"Look how scrawny he is!"

Sora tried to shrink down into the ground, but with no avail.

"What do you want?" he asked quietly, his voice shaking. There were a few scattered snickers, but the leader held his hand up, and they all went silent.

"Look kid," he said, leaning in close until his hooded face was inches in front of him. "We were hired and paid to kill you. So no matter how innocent you act, you're going down."

"I don't think so," a sing-song voice piped up from behind the hooded strangers. The leader whipped around, and from over his shoulder, Sora saw no one standing there.

"Show yourself!" he barked.

Another voice spoke out, laughing lightly. "Oh, but that would ruin all the fun!" Sora gulped and tried to escape while they were distracted, but one figure stepped forward, causing him to stay in the middle of the circle.

"Now," a third voice added, sounding all business-like. "You give us the kid, and we leave you alone."

The leader laughed humorlessly. "So you can be paid for something we did? We found him first, not you."

"Give. Him. Up," the same voice snapped.

"If you want him so bad, fight me for him," the leader said cockily, pulling out a long knife. "You and me, no dirty tricks or backup allowed." There were a few scattered whispers from the new strangers, and a few of the men tried to locate the source of the voices, but it was obvious they were trained well. There was absolutely so sign of them.

"Fine," the third voice said flatly. "Let Sora step to the side, whoever wins takes him and leaves. No following the winner." Sora blinked, surprised. How did this guy know his name? One man shoved Sora to the wall, and he sunk to the ground next to his spilt coffee.

"Now come out, come out, wherever you are," the leader murmured, swinging his knife back and forth. There were a few moments of silence, and then a shadow leaped out, hitting the hooded figure directly on the back. Crying out, he whipped around, slashing his knife. The stranger easily dodged it.

"C'mon, you can do better than that," the stranger taunted. Sora craned his neck to catch a glimpse of the newcomer. He was short- about Sora's height, and he was wearing a hoodie with the hood pulled up to hide his face- just like the men who had cornered Sora. He was holding two wickedly curved knives, almost in a crescent shape. He shifted from foot to foot, obviously skilled in fighting.

"Shut up," the man snarled, once again lunging towards the newcomer. Again, the blow was dodged, and it was returned with a powerful kick to the stomach.

"Syros!" one of the men shouted out. The man fighting the stranger staggered up, waving to the others.

"I'm fine!" he barked out. "I can handle this!" The man, Syros, again charged again, and was again propelled backwards by a slash to the shoulder. The younger boy twirled his knives around, a soft laugh escaping him.

"Do you give in?" he said, his voice amused.

Syros just lunged at him again.

Sora was so involved with the fight that he didn't notice a tall, lanky figure slink over to where he was sitting propped against the wall. The figure tiptoed forward until he was crouched down to his height. He leaned down, his lips almost brushing the brunette's ear.

"Follow me if you want to live," he whispered, causing Sora to jump. He turned towards the figure, and was met by the sight of another person wearing with a hood pulled over his face. The stranger jerked his finger towards another alley, and Sora nodded silently. Syros' men were watching the fight, ready to leap to their leader's defense. Taking the distraction as an advantage, Sora followed the other man. Slinking into the alley, Sora met with another short figure, this one wearing a dark blue hoodie instead of the other black ones. The third figure nodded at Sora's escort and stepped out, holding out two fingers in the direction of the person fighting.

"Well," Sora heard the fighter announce. "It looks like I won."

"No you didn't!" Syros yelled, his voice tinged with pain. "I haven't given in yet!"

"Maybe not, but I have the winner's prize," the shorter fighter said. Soft footsteps followed, and Sora assumed that he was making a break for it. There was silence, and then scattered yells reached Sora's ears. The figure darted into the alley where Sora and the other two strangers were hiding, pressing his back to the wall. His breath came in heavy gasps, and Sora could tell that he was winded.

"Who _are_ you?" Sora asked, looking at them warily. The figure in the blue hoodie turned to look at him.

"We're here to rescue you." Sora blinked, his mouth open in surprise. The stranger was a _girl_. Sora assumed she was his age, either sixteen or seventeen. To the side of Sora, the other figure that fought Syros collapsed to the ground, holding his side.

"Shit," he breathed. The taller man knelt down by his side, anxiously talking to him.

"We need to go," he said. "Like, now." The girl nodded, and grabbed Sora's wrist. Checking to make sure the coast was clear; she darted out, dragging the brunette behind her. Letting out a grunt of pain as he nicked his knee on the side of the wall, Sora ran away from the alleys and towards the border of the town.

"Where are we going?" Sora panted.

"We're going to get on one of the evening trains leaving from the edge of the woods," the girl answered shortly. Sora's eyes widened and he none-so-gently ripped his hand out of her grip. Shaking his head, he took a step back.

"No!" he exclaimed frantically. "I can't leave!"

"Yes you can," a voice said from behind Sora. The taller stranger strode past the two of them, carrying the other hooded figure in his arms; bridle style. "If you want your friends, family, and, most importantly, yourself to live, you have to come with us." Sora paused, hesitating.

"But…" he said helplessly, but he knew there was no choice. He looked back toward the alley where Syros had been tricked and spotted his coffee cup lying dejectedly on its side. Glumly following the three strangers, he knew there was no turning back.

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**Yes, it is VERY short. But we're just getting into it.**

**Who can figure out who the strangers are? It's really not that hard.**

**Let's get one thing straight before I ask you to review- the second and third chapter are written, but I'm not going to post them until I've worked on Letters From a Loved One some more. So I guess this is a little sneak peak at what's coming after LFLO progresses a little bit.**

**Please review!**

**-bee**


	2. Prince of Hearts

**PLEASE READ: I know, I know. LFLO didn't progress, yet here this is. The reason is, all my in-progress fanfics are going to be on hiatus for a while. So this is an apology, because the rest of the chapters aren't completed yet and won't be posted...for a while, if ever.  
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**Okay, a little bit of explaining here. The last chapter moved pretty fast, so it's going to slow down a little.**

**CLARIFICATION- it is late afternoon at this point, almost sunset.**

**We also learn the strangers' names…**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything concerning KH.**

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Panting, Sora collapsed onto the forest floor, bracing his hands on his knees. The three others stood around him, standing erect and watchful, obviously cautious about an attack. The taller stranger gently laid the boy on the ground, slinging his large backpack onto the ground. Rummaging around inside, he took out a first aid kit.

"You can do that on the train," the girl snapped, shifting from foot to foot. "It won't be long until they come after us this way." The other figure looked like he wanted to argue, but finally shrugged and put the kit back inside the bag. Again picking up his companion, he started to go farther into the woods.

"The train station is that way," Sora said suddenly, his voice surprisingly strong. "The way you're heading is towards the second stop at Sunset Town- they only drop off supplies there."

"Exactly," the girl said shortly. "You really thought we were just going to waltz on the train with him covered in blood?" she said, jerking her thumb towards her companion. "We're going to sneak onto one of the boxcars." Sora opened his mouth to reply, but thought better of it and just followed them silently. Struggling to keep up with their swift pace, he trailed behind, tripping over roots and loose stones.

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What seemed like miles later, the taller stranger stopped short, almost causing Sora to run into him.

"Okay," he whispered. "There's a bunch of workers waiting to unload the train. As soon as the train pulls in, run towards the back, and _keep low_," he added, turning his head towards the brunette. Shifting his grip on the younger boy, he turned to the girl. "You're in charge of Spiky here. I'll take care of him," he said, jerking his head to the boy laying unconscious in his arms. There was a loud sound of clattering, and the girl tensed from beside Sora.

"Ready?" she whispered. Sora just nodded. The loud screeching sound of the train's brakes echoed through the still air, and the workers' started yelling to each other to start and unpack the supplies. Looking both ways, the taller stranger darted out, the girl following while hauling Sora behind her. The train had to be more than twenty cars long; the ones in the front were passenger, while the boxcars in the back were filled with crates. Dashing towards the boxcars, the trio (along with Sora) approached one of the very last cars that was already unloaded. Hauling open the door, the girl ushered them all inside.

"Let's go, let's go," she hissed. Scrambling up into the dark container, Sora crawled in as far as he could. The girl climbed in last and closed the door behind them, leaving a crack open for light. Peering around the small area, Sora assessed their rest stop. A few rows of crates were stacked up on the sides, the only empty space in the middle of the car. The floor was dusty, square-shaped indentations lining up in perfect rows.

"Get out the first aid kit," the taller stranger ordered. The girl scampered over to the bag and rummaged around. The tall figure sighed loudly, and pulled his hood back.

Sora blinked in shock.

The stranger had the most eccentric hair Sora had ever seen. It was bright, almost neon red, and was standing up on end in large spikes, almost like a porcupine with its spikes slicked back. His eyes were electric green, and he had strange teardrop-shaped tattoos under his eyes. He caught Sora staring and matched his stare with his own. Flustered, Sora looked away. He looked to be at least nineteen or twenty years old, Sora's elder by a few years. The girl came forward and handed him the first aid kit, pulling her hood back as well. She also had red hair- not as bright, more like a maroon color. Her eyes were a darkened blue, and Sora had to admit, she was attractive. Blushing again, he looked away.

"How is he?" the girl asked quietly, addressing the redhead. The older stranger shook his head, looking discouraged.

"Not good. It looks like Syros got in a few good hits. His ankle looks like its twisted and he has a deep gash in his side," the redhead muttered. The girl let out a hum, and reached out towards their injured companion. Gently pulling back his hood, Sora was again surprised.

He had bright blonde hair spiked up to the side almost in a cowlick. He was slightly pale, whether from blood loss or he just had a pale complexion, Sora couldn't tell.

He looked like he could be Sora's twin.

Both redheads completely ignored Sora, and instead started to work on the injured blonde, taking off his hoodie and revealing a black t-shirt with a checkered pattern.

"He's going to be pretty upset," the older redhead muttered, sounding a little amused. "This was his favorite t-shirt." The girl laughed slightly, sounding stressed. Unrolling a few bandages, she set to work wrapping his injuries.

"So…" Sora began, his curiosity becoming the better of him. "Who are you? Like, what's your name?" Two identical looks of surprise stared at him. "I mean," the brunette said, flustered, you don't have to tell me, I don't have to-"

"You can call me Alex," the older redhead said suddenly, startling Sora. "And this is Kayla and Logan," he added, gesturing at the girl and the injured boy respectively. Nodding dumbly, Sora knew that these were not their real names- they were cover names to protect their identity.

Twirling a piece of hay between his fingers, he looked out the door and into the fading sunlight. The train lurched, and it began its trek to the west side of Sora's hometown.

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"I guess we have some explaining to do." Sora stared at the older redhead, Alex, that had just spoken.

"You said you were saving my life, but it feels more like you're kidnapping me," Sora said, his voice sounding slightly whiny. Kayla nodded slightly, packing the first aid supplies back in the bag.

"I understand how you feel, but we really are helping you," she said quietly. "You see, you are very important to the future of the Hearts." Sora nodded slightly, recognizing the royalty. The Hearts were one of the five royal families that resided west of where Sora lived. The Hearts were the dominant family, ruling the most land and having the most power. The other families; the Spades, Clubs, Diamonds, and Suits, were smaller kingdoms, all having less power than the Hearts.

"What do I have to do with the Hearts?" he asked quizzically. Kayla sighed slightly.

"I guess I should start at the beginning," she said, leaning against a crate to get more comfortable. "Cloud Heart is the current King of Hearts, having been in the same position for a long time," she began. "He has no heir because…well…"

"He's gay," Alex said flatly, not looking up from where he was sharpening a knife. "His people were not very pleased when they found out their leader was bisexual."

"Yep. He needs someone else at his side, a heir, to support him and keep the kingdom together. His adopted son, the original Prince of Hearts, disappeared a few years ago. He needs someone to take his son's place. But the only problem is, he has no relatives, no adopted children, no nothing. This is where you come in," Kayla said with an air of finality. "Sora Stefens, you are the heir of the throne."

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**Wow, I suck at cliffhangers.**

**Anyways, who saw that coming? The characters are obvious and the plot is pretty straightforward.**

**If I can, I'll try to complete another chapter and post it. :( sorry guys, life is really hard right now.**

**REVIEW PLEASE.**

**-bee**


	3. Captured

**Well, so much for this being on hiatus and not being posted for a while. I finished this the day after I posted the last chapter (oh, how I love sick days)... **

**It's not like I'm making this up as I go…It's all planned out, written in my notebook…I just didn't know how to put it all together. But I had a surge of inspiration, you lucky ducks.**

**I do love this story- of all my fanfics, this one has the greatest chance of surviving :) **

**Okay, so where we left off, I had a cliffhanger and we learned the 'names' of the strangers.**

**Dislaimer: I own nothing.**

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Stunned silence filled the air.

"I'm WHAT?" Sora screeched. Alex shushed him, shooting him a glare.

"Yes," Kayla said, exasperated. "Alex, Logan and I were hired to find you and bring you safely to the throne."

"But how the hell does that work?" Sora hissed, still shocked. "I'm…I'm not related in any way!"

"Yes you are," Alex said, irritated. "The Hearts family has many branches on it separating into different families- you just happened to be the most available kid to take the throne."

"But I don't know how to rule a kingdom!" Sora wailed. Kayla rolled her eyes.

"That's why we're taking you to the Hearts Kingdom! They'll teach you everything you'll need to know," she said, absentmindedly picking at a nail. Sora sat there in silence, still shocked and, most of all, frightened.

"This is like a twisted version of The Princess Diaries," the brunette whispered. The only response was a loud snort from Alex and a smirk from Kayla.

"This is going to be a long ride," Alex muttered, earning a kick from Kayla.

"Shut up," she growled, curling up to go to sleep. "You may want to rest while you can," the redhead said, addressing Sora. "You never know when we'll be safe like this again. Taking her advice to heart, Sora curled up, closing his eyes and letting the darkness overwhelm him.

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Sora woke up to the loud whistle of the train. Grumbling, he opened one eye and saw that Alex and Kayla were already awake. Peering through the crack in the door, Sora saw the moon shining brightly and realized that it was late. To his side, Alex cursed.

"This is our stop. Get ready- they're going to open up the doors," he hissed.

"Wow, I feel like crap," a soft voice grumbled from Alex's side. Startled, Sora turned to see Logan stirring, blinking rapidly.

"Good timing," Alex said dryly. "We gotta get ready to run." Logan nodded and sat up, rubbing his side tenderly. He looked at Sora as if he was assessing him, and Sora was surprised to see that he had bright blue eyes just like himself. The train stopped with a lurch, and they all stood up, Logan letting out a yelp of pain.

"Oh lovely," he grumbled, trying to stretch out his foot with a wince. "This puts a damper on our plans."

"Don't worry Blondie," Alex said gleefully. "I'll carry you!" And with a flourish, he picked Logan up once again bridle-style.

"Put me down!" Logan snapped.

"Shut up you morons!" Kayla glared, not looking at all amused by their antics. The pair quieted down, Logan still glaring at the older redhead fiercely. There was a loud clank outside their boxcar, and Sora heard a few voices from the workers.

"Why don't we go out the way we came?" Sora whispered. Alex let out a sound of amusement.

"On one side of the train, there's the station," Logan whispered. "On the other, there's a huge drop-off- if we were to go out that way, we'd die in a matter of seconds." Sora blinked, and hesitantly looked out through the crack in the door. True to his word, there was a huge drop-off- the moon's reflection shimmered in the churning water of the river below.

"Oh," he whispered. "Right." There was a loud shout from the side door of the boxcar and Alex, being the one closest to the door, tensed. Kayla grabbed Sora's hand- not out of fright, but to keep him in her sight. Sora blushed, and was thankful for the darkness hiding his face. The doors slowly slid open; two men pulling the huge doors grunting with the effort.

"Now!" Alex yelled. "He darted through the crack between the doors, causing a startled yelp from the workers. Kayla followed, Sora right behind her. Sora was dragged by Kayla into the middle of the station- shocked workers staring at them. One person yelled to stop them, but no one made a move.

Sprinting out of the station, they weaved their way through the different workers, finally emerging in the middle of a silent road. Darting across, they once again returned into the woods. Clearing a way through, they walked for a few more minutes until the station was out of sight. Letting out a sigh of relief, Kayla sunk to the ground. Sora hesitantly sat down next to her, breathing heavily as well. Alex however, remained standing, still holding the disgruntled blonde in his arms.

"We have to keep moving," he insisted. "They'll come after us, thinking we stole something." Sora let out a small noise of exasperation, but stood, Kayla beside him.

"Alright," she grumbled. "Let's get going now so we can find a place to camp out soon. I'm exhausted."

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Sora tripped over a large root, flailing his arms and coming crashing down onto the ground. Letting out a grunt, he heaved himself up. Kayla sighed and helped him up, while Alex rolled his eyes. Logan said nothing, as he had fallen asleep a while ago.

"C'mon Sora," Kayla murmured, her beautiful eyes flashing with irritation. "You can't keep slowing us down. We need to find camp to rest. It's been a long day."

Sora stood up, brushing himself off. "Sorry," he muttered pathetically. Kayla said nothing, just walked ahead to Alex's side. Setting off again, Sora trailed behind, biting his lip in thought.

"_I don't have to be this 'prince' if they never get me there…_" Sora thought, gears turning. _"If I can just get away from them, maybe I can go back home and-"_

"Ok, I think here is good," Alex announced loudly, examining a clearing in the woods they had come upon. Sora blinked, confused, then darted ahead to see what they were looking at. Peeking around his shoulder, he surveyed the clearing with worn-down grass and pile of burnt wood.

"I dunno…" he said uncertainly. "It looks sort of…worn-down?" Alex scoffed, walking into the clearing and gently setting Logan down.

"Course it is. You think that we would sleep in the middle of the woods with no idea about who or what's around us?" the redhead asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, kinda, yeah," Sora said, scratching the back of his head. Alex rolled his eyes, again, and slung his backpack off his back, Kayla doing the same. Rummaging around, Kayla pulled a thin package out of her backpack. Sora sat down a distance away from both of them, awkwardly placing his hands in his lap.  
"So, what's for dinner tonight?" Alex asked, pulling out a wickedly sharp knife from his bag. Sora just stared, wondering how he could keep it in the cloth bag without puncturing a hole in it. Shaking his head, Sora watched Kayla, and was shocked as he saw her pull out a large pot and a thin knife.

"Beef stew," Kayla said distractedly. "Oh, Sora," she said, not looking up. "Wanna help me make dinner?"

"Uh…sure," he responded dumbly, getting up to go sit beside her. She showed him how to slice the dried beef into little slices while she set up a few sticks to hold the pot above the fire. Humming a random tune, Sora soon forgot about his thoughts of escape as he got into the rhythm of cutting. When he finally finished, he looked up and was surprised to see a large fire already going and the water boiling noisily. Kayla took the beef from him and dropped it into the pot with a handful of unidentified vegetables. Sora wiped his hands distractedly on his jeans, and turned to look for Alex.

"Where's Alex?" he asked, voicing his thoughts. Kayla shrugged, stirring the stew.

"Who knows?" she said affectionately. "Probably wandering and falling down a rabbit hole or something." Sora blinked, surprised by his answer. He opened his mouth to respond when a voice startled him from behind.

"I wouldn't be surprised," the voice said dryly. Sora shrieked and clutched his chest, spinning around.

"Ohmygoodgolly!" he squealed, recognizing Logan. "You scared me!"

The blonde rolled his eyes. "No, really?" he said sarcastically. Kayla let out a snort, still examining the stew.

"Don't give him a heart attack," she said. "A corpse will be no use as a prince." Logan scoffed and brushed past Sora, sitting down next to the redhead. He peeked into the pot curiously, and the corner of his mouth twitched up in a grin.

"Oh yum," he said, lying out on his back. "Dried beef and wilted veggies. My favorite." Kayla rolled her eyes, and directing Sora to stir the stew.

"How are you feeling?" she asked, turning away from Sora and facing the blonde.

Logan shrugged. "Better. A little bit sore, but fine." Sora listened to their conversation for a while before he lost interest, then he began to stare at the stew, a blank look in his eyes.

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"Sora! SORA!" the brunette blinked, and turned to see Kayla storming over to where he was sitting by the fire. She grabbed the spoon out of his hands and grabbed the pot, taking it off of the fire.

"Wha…?" he said, disoriented. The redhead was fuming, desperately giving their dinner one last stir.

"I thought I told you to keep an eye on it!" she exclaimed, her voice desperate. "Ugh, look what you did! It's overcooked and burnt- we can't eat in now…" Sora, still confused, peered at the stew and saw black pieces of meat with ever more wilted vegetables.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" Sora said worriedly. "I must have blanked out…honest! I didn't mean to!" Kayla ignored him, trying to save their meal, while Logan narrowed his eyes at the brunette. Feeling ashamed, Sora held his head down, feeling miserable. These strangers had saved his life (even if it felt like they were kidnapping him), and all they got in return was his complaining and burnt food.

"Look Sora," Kayla said, abandoning the stew. "I understand you've been through a lot. But I would really appreciate it if you were a little bit more responsible." The redhead's voice was sharp, but her eyes were soft. "I'll forgive you now, but please, next time be more careful."

"I'm sorry," Sora murmured again. Logan studied him carefully.

"Well," the blonde said, leaning over Kayla to look at the stew. "We can't eat that. So I guess we'll have to go without dinner tonight."

Kayla shook her head. "Logan, you're hurt, and the last thing we need is you malnourished and injured. We'll figure something out…"

Logan turned away. "Where is Alex anyways?"

"I think I saw him pass by in the woods earlier," Sora said, gesturing towards the other side of the clearing. Logan turned to where he was pointing, and sighed.

"I'll go get him," he said in a bored tone. Standing up with a little bit of effort, he limped into the woods, despite Kayla's protests.

"Idiot," she grumbled. "He's going to get himself hurt even more."

Sora sighed, and looked at the redhead worriedly. "Look, Kayla, I'm really sorry, honest-"

"Sora," Kayla interrupted. "I understand. Really. It's not that big of a deal. Axel was probably out hunting anyways, so it's not like we'll starve tonight." They sat in uncomfortable silence for a while, until Kayla let out a groan of exasperation. "Where are they?" she grumbled. "It's been a while, they should be back by now." Sora said nothing, just gazed into the forest. A few more minutes passed, and then Kayla stood up.

"Where are you going?" Sora asked, standing up as well. He was not comfortable in the forest, and was not about to be left alone.

"To go find them," she growled irritably. "The idiots probably got lost."

"Can I come?" Sora asked meekly, still feeling bad about their dinner.

Kayla smiled gently. "Of course." She headed over to where Alex and Logan had disappeared, Sora behind her.

"Do you think they're okay?" Sora asked as they stepped into the shadows of the trees.

"Yeah, they're probably arguing or something. We'll find them," the redhead responded confidently. They walked in silence, until Kayla suddenly halted, Sora running into her. Muttering a 'sorry', he looked at her worriedly.

"What?" he asked.

"Sh," she said sharply. "I think I heard something…"

A rustle.

A click.

Kayla's eyes widened.

"SORA!" she shrieked, spinning around. "RUN!" Sora just stared at her in shock, and saw the dark muzzle of a gun sticking out of the bushes. Before he could react, a small object shot out of the gun and hit Kayla in the back.

He screamed.

He tried running, but a figure emerged from the woods and grabbed him, forcing his hands behind his back.

"KAYLA!" he screamed, staring at her motionless body. The man who was holding him stuffed a rag in his mouth, covered in a smelly liquid. Gagging, he screamed himself hoarse until everything turned blurry.

Then the darkness overwhelmed him.

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**What's this? A plot?**

**Oh, it's just getting good :D**

**So, I surprised myself by updating so soon. I had nothing to do, and I was hit by a surge of inspiration. And this was written! :) **

**The next chapter is in the making, so please review!**

**-bee**


	4. Distress

**What's this? Posting another chapter the day after the last one? I'm sure you're all relieved that you can find out what happens after the cliffhanger so soon :)**

**This chapter is _short_- I was originally planning on making this longer, but I figured it ended the best this way.  
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**Just a warning- the next few chapter probably won't be posted as quickly as the last few, so don't get used to it~**

**(Let's pretend that Logan is all healed, I need him healthy for this chapter :D)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own.**

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Spinning, blurry shapes were dancing in front of Sora's eyes. Groaning, he blinked hard, trying to get them away, but with no avail. He pulled his arm up to rub his eyes, but was surprised to find that he couldn't move them.

"Huh…?" he slurred, his mind working slowly.

Suddenly, it all came back.

Alex disappearing.

Logan disappearing.

Kayla getting shot.

Sora's eyes widened, and his vision suddenly became sharp. Blinking, he stared at his surroundings, and saw that he was in the middle of a camp with tents set up everywhere. Struggling to get up, he realized that he was tied to a pole, his wrists tightly lashed together. A few people walked by, dressed in all white, but made no move to help him.

"It's no use. The rope is way too thick to break through."

Sora jumped, startled, and turned to see Logan tied to a pole next to him, his bangs falling into his face. He looked exhausted, and was supporting a thin cut on his upper arm. Alex was beside him, sleeping, his arms twisted behind him in a painful-looking way.

Trying to block out his confusion, Sora shook his head. "Where are we?" he questioned. "And wh…where's Kayla?"

The blonde sighed. "We're in a campsite of the Alliance- an anti-Hearts organization."

"And Kayla?" the brunette asked, his voice shaking.

Logan flashed him a true smile for the first time. "She's fine."

Sora felt like he was going to pass out from relief. "I thought she had died," he muttered, closing his eyes.

"Nope," Logan said cheerfully. "Just hit her with a tranquilizer gun. Knocked her out for a good day or two."

Sora was about to respond when there was a commotion from a tent across from them. Stiffening, Logan sat up, nudging Alex with his foot.

"Look alive," the blonde hissed to Sora. A tall man marched up to them, dressed in all white as well. Behind him were two other men that were carrying Kayla between them. The man in the front marched up to Alex and roughly kicked him in the side.

"Wake up," he snarled. The redhead opened his eyes and glared at the man.

"Well, good morning to you too sunshine," he mumbled, stretching as much as he could with his hands bound. The other men walked up to the pole next to Sora and threw Kayla down, roughly binding her hands as well. Sora stared at her, anxiously looking for any injuries, but saw none. The redhead was blindfolded, and as soon as she was secure, the men tore the cloth off of her face. She blinked, then turned and saw Sora. Shooting him a confident and reassuring smile, Sora hesitantly smiled back.

"You two," the man in charge barked to the two other men. "Come with me. You need to report in."

"Yessir!" the guards barked, making Alex snicker. Shooting the older redhead a dangerous look, the two men walked off, trailing behind the other man. Relaxing against the rope, Sora sighed miserably.

"How are we going to get out of this?" he said miserably. Kayla shot him a smile.

"Don't worry, we'll figure something out," she said reassuringly. A loud snort sounded from Sora's other side where Logan was sitting.

"We?" he said with a scoff. "More like me. I'm the one who always gets us out of these situations."

"And that's why we love you!" Alex said in a sing-song voice. Logan just snorted and slumped in his bindings.

"You do know that the only reason you're the one to get us out of these situations is because Alex is too lazy and I don't feel like getting my hands dirty, right?" Kayla said with a grin.

Logan shot her an incredulous look. "Don't like getting your hands dirty? Seriously? Kayla, you're the one who's skinning and de-gutting the food we bring back, and not hesitating to roll in the mud to keep cool."

The redhead shrugged innocently, ignoring the surprised stare from Sora. "It does keep you cool."

"So, are you going to get us out of here or not?" Alex interrupted sarcastically, staring at Logan. The blonde just sighed, and closed his eyes.

"Honestly, I have no idea how we're going to get out of this mess. We're all unarmed, this rope is way too thick, and there's no one else to bail us out," Logan said quietly. No one else spoke, surprised at how quickly he gave up.

"Well, if we're not going to try to escape, why don't we have a heartfelt confession before we die?" Alex said seriously.

Kayla scoffed. "Not funny Alex. We're not going to die." The redhead ignored her and continued in a dramatic voice.

"When I was a young child I lived in the-"

"We don't care!" Logan said, butting in. "Honestly, could you shut up for just a little while?"

"My parents never cared about me; they left me to-"

"Shut up."

"So I left. It was probably the best decision of-"

"Ugh, you are _impossible_."

"I was found by a group that called themselves-"

"HONEST TO GOD, ALEX, IF YOU DON'T SHUT UP RIGHT NOW I-"

"Shut up!" Kayla snarled, noticing the stares they were getting from others around them. "If you really want to pour your heart out in a confession and tell us your life story, _do it later_!" Alex finally shut up, Sora watching with wide eyes.

"Great. Alex, look what you did," Logan hissed, eyeing a small hooded guard that was approaching them, a knife hanging loosely in his hand. Alex snorted when the man got closer.

"We can handle him," he hissed back. "If he decides to threaten us we can just head-butt him and we'd probably knock him out."

The hooded figure strode up to them and abruptly halted in front of Logan. Frowning, the blonde stared up at the guard, and let out a noise of surprise when the man knelt down, pressed the knife against his neck, and whispered something in his ear. The surprised look quickly faded to a grin, and the knife was slowly drawn away from his neck and to the rope tying his hands together.

"What the hell?" Alex blurted. The figure let out a hiss of disapprovement, and Logan glared at the redhead.

"Logan, what's going on?" Kayla murmured quietly, looking just as confused as Sora.

Logan turned to the smaller redhead and grinned. "Guys," he said, tilting his head towards the guard. "This is Xion." The figure nodded and reached to pull back his hood revealing a young girl with short, black hair, bearing striking resemblance to Kayla.

"Xion's going to help us out," Logan continued, grinning. "Looks like we do have someone to bail us out after all."

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**Aaaand, it ends here.**

**It's painfully short, but it ended the best here, and I would prefer to have lots of short chapters instead of a few long ones :)**

**Again, thanks for all the reviews, and please, please review if you haven't already.**

**Love you all :3**

**-bee**


	5. Right Where We Started

**Hey, know what I just realized? My other one-shot, Mission in Pridelands (SHAMELESS ADVERTISING: GO READ IT), has a greater word count than this.**

**And MiP is only one chapter.**

**I know, that's really sad, but this will have a bunch of chapters, I promise.**

**So, I'm really trying to type this up as fast as I can, but PLEASE REVIEW. I'm starting to think I should put this fanfic on hiatus because it seems like no one is reading it…**

**Disclaimer: Don't own KH**

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"Well, that's almost a little too convenient," Alex grumbled, eyeing Xion in distaste. "So she just magically appears when we need her? How do we know she doesn't work for the Alliance?"

Logan snorted, flexing his wrists behind the pole, now being free from his bonds. "I've known Xion for years, and I also know for a fact that she 'joined' the Alliance as a spy," the blonde said, shooting Alex a triumphant look. "Seriously, have some faith in me."

"Ok, it's nice and all that she wants to help us, but just how exactly are we going to escape? She can't just walk us out of the campsite," Kayla said, raising an eyebrow. Xion opened her mouth to respond, but frowned suddenly, and looked sheepish.

"Well, didn't really think that part through…" she said uneasily. Logan smiled at her reassuringly, while Alex just snorted, turning away from the girl.

"Xiiana!" a sharp bark sounded from behind the small black-haired girl. Jumping, Xion pulled her hood back on and turned, standing up straight.

"Yessir!" she said swiftly in reply. A tall man strode up to her, towering over her small body.

"What were you doing with the prisoners? You know it's a rule that you are not allowed to converse with prisoners except under orders," he said, glaring.

"I do, sir," she responded, not missing a beat.

"Then why, exactly, were you speaking with him?" the man asked, gesturing at Logan.

"Sir, he was trying to escape. I told him he would be punished for trying," Xion answered.

"Why do you have a weapon?" the man demanded, grabbing her wrist, revealing the short knife held in her grip. "No members of the Alliance are allowed to possess a weapon unless under combat, hunting, or in training."

"I know that sir. I disarmed the prisoner," Xion answered, sounding irritated. "My orders were to stop him from trying to escape and disarm him." The man stiffened, staring at her, before he turned to Logan, bending down to his height. Grabbing his forearm, the man was about to bring the blonde to his feet, which caused the blonde to shoot Xion a look of helplessness. If he was picked up, it would quickly be discovered that his bonds were no longer intact. The man hesitated, then let go of the blonde's arm.

"Very well," he said gruffly. "Carry on." He walked off, Xion standing rigidly until he was out of sight. Sighing, Xion pulled her hood back again, revealing worried blue eyes.

"I can cut all of your bonds, but that's really all I can do. I can't hang around long because someone will get suspicious," Xion said, looking apologetic.

"That's fine," Kayla said briskly. "What would be even better would be if you could provide a distraction, and in the confusion we could escape."

"Thank goodness we have you to plan our escapes," Alex said dryly, earning a stern look from Logan. Quickly cutting the rope off of all of their wrists, Xion stood back up and pulled her hood on.

"I'll see what I can do for a distraction," she whispered. "Be prepared to run if I can do it." She walked off, heading to the same tent that the other man had gone into.

"Okay, problem," Alex said loudly, rolling his shoulders stiffly.

"If you have to go to the bathroom, hold it," Logan snapped humorlessly. Sora let out a snort of laughter but hurriedly looked away when Alex stared at him.

"No, I don't have to go to the bathroom," the redhead snapped at the blonde. "How are we going to escape if we're surrounded by tents on all sides? It's not like they're just going to let us go by without doing anything."

"Run fast," Kayla said shortly.

"Your advice will end up killing us some day," Alex grumbled, slouching against the pole.

"And I'll look forward to that day when you finally shut up," Logan snapped back.

"Well aren't we a ray of sunshine?" Alex said, quietly, Logan pretending not to hear him. Sora watched them argue amusedly, suddenly missing his friends back home. Frowning, he leaned against the pole and looked up at the blue sky peeking through the leaves. Were Tidus and Wakka thinking about him? Did his parents realize he was essentially being kidnapped and thrown into a new family?

"Do my parents know about this?" Sora asked suddenly. "Do they know that you guys are taking me to the Hearts kingdom to become prince?"

"Sure do," Alex said flippantly. "They're being brought to the kingdom too. They'll always be your parents, but for the public they're just serving as your aunt and uncle."

Sora frowned. "That's…a little twisted."

"What, the fact that you have to pretend that some strangers are your parents and your parents are strangers? I think that's just awkward," Alex said, scuffing his shoe in the dirt. "What a way to bond." Sora hummed in agreement, while Logan just frowned. They sat in silence, hoping that Xion would provide a distraction, anything that would get them out of the camp.

"We seriously need to get out of here," Logan finally grumbled, looking irritated. "We just have one more week to travel across four kingdoms. We're losing time."

"Couldn't we just get the king or someone from the Hearts kingdom to get us on a train? We could get there much quicker," Sora said.

"Yeah, I wish," Alex said bitterly. "See, the reason we were sent to escort you is because this is an undercover operation. No one should know that the king is desperate enough to take in a random relative to be his 'son'. The whole objective is for us to get you there in time for the king to announce you as the prince, unnoticed."

"If no one else knows I'm being escorted, then who were those guys that attacked me back at my hometown?" Sora said questioningly.

"Spies," Kayla spat in disgust. "Every kingdom has them- and apparently one infiltrated the Hearts kingdom enough to find out that the king sent us out."

"What about these guys, the Alliance?" Sora said. "Do they have spies too?"

"The guys who attacked you were probably a part of the Alliance," Logan said thoughtfully. "The Alliance probably sent them out as a forward team to try and capture you."

"But they said they were going to kill me," Sora exclaimed.

"Doesn't a death threat seem more threatening than a kidnapping threat?" Alex said with a grin. "They were most likely trying to intimidate you."

"Oh," Sora said simply. Silence settled over them, and Alex closed his eyes as if to go to sleep. Kayla folded her legs beneath her, and Logan shifted, trying to get comfortable.

"Ok, if Xion doesn't do something in five seconds, I'm gonna make a break for it," Alex suddenly said impatiently.

"Calm down," Kayla snapped. "It's been like, two minutes." Alex just grumbled, while the corner of Logan's mouth twitched up in a smile.

"I agree- I think Xion would have attempted something by now…" Logan muttered, earning a surprised look from Kayla. "If she can't do anything she would have let-"

A loud barking interrupted him, and Sora turned to look for the source of the barks and shouting.

"Well doesn't she have the greatest timing," Alex said, sitting up. "Get ready- we're gonna have to make a break for it." Sora tensed, and beside him Kayla muttered,

"Stay close to me."

Sora watched Logan, waiting for a signal to run, and watched as he stood still, not moving.

"What are we waiting for?" Alex hissed.

"The barks are coming this way…" Logan hissed back. "We don't want to get the dogs stuck behind us."

"All the more reason to go NOW," Alex snarled back. "LET'S GO!"

"NO ALEX!" Logan yelled, his eyes widening as the redhead sprang up, darting the opposite way of the barks. "C'mon," he said, jumping up. "We can't leave him behind." Sora ran behind the blonde, Kayla close behind, his heart pounding and his breath racing. There was no way they could get out, the dogs would catch up with them, someone would attack them-

"SHIT!"

Sora stopped short, spinning around, and saw Kayla being restrained by a large man.

"GO SORA!" she screeched, giving the brunette an odd sense of de ja vu. He turned to run, and was stopped short by another tall man standing in front of him. Letting out a squeak of surprise, he darted around the heavy man, running as fast as he possibly could. Panting, he could just see a flash of blonde in front of him. Straining even harder, using all the skills he learned in track at school, he soon caught up to Logan, earning an impressed look from the blonde.

"We're almost there," Logan panted, eyes focusing on the dark green of the trees ahead. "Just a few more-" His words were adruptly cut off as both he and Sora fell to the ground, tripping over a rope that was pulled taught across the path.

"Hah!" a loud voice said triumphantly, picking Logan up by the arm, causing him to hiss in pain. Another man did the same to Sora, and the brunette struggled desperately to break free.

"We got you now," one of the men sneered.

Logan grinned. "I think not," he said, eyes twinkling. The man frowned, and suddenly, the sound of dozens of crazed dogs barking appeared _very _close. Whipping around, the man holding Sora turned and saw a pack of muscular dogs sprinting towards them, heading to freedom in the woods. Cursing, he dropped Sora to the ground, all intent going to escaping from the dogs. Sora and Logan, now free, sprinted towards the woods, the dogs right on their tail **(A/N: haha, see what I did there?)**. Adrenaline coursing through his veins, Sora made a final dash out of the camp and jumped to the side, letting the dogs whisk past him and run free. Grinning, he let out a sigh of relief.

"Thank goodness we got out of there quick enough…right?" the brunette said.

There was no blonde behind him.

Cursing, Sora spun to face towards the camp. "Oh no," he whispered. Both Logan and Kayla were captured, and he had no idea where Alex was. "Alex!" Sora said loudly. "Alex!"

"Shut up you moron!" a voice snarled from beside him. Whipping around, Sora turned and saw the redhead glaring at him.

"Oh, thank goodness," Sora breathed. "Kayla and Logan were caught and-"

"I know," Alex said shortly. "And it's all my fault."

"Sora blinked, surprised. "No it isn't- don't blame-"

"You can pity me later," the redhead suddenly snapped. "We need to get out of here before guards come looking for us. We're too close to the camp." Walking off, his strides swift and angry, Sora hurried to catch up with him, not wanting to be left behind.

And they were right back where they started.

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**If you don't understand the last sentence, it means that once again, like in the last chapter, some of them were captured and stuck inside the camp.**

**Sorry that this one took a little bit longer- this is probably the rate most chapters will be written.**

**Please review!**

**-bee**


	6. Risking It All

**I totally have a huge essay due tomorrow, and I haven't even started yet, but I decided to spoil you guys and bust this thing out.**

**So…not much else to say. I'm really trying to post these chapters as soon as I can, but please review and leave suggestions or comments or whatever. I'd love to hear from you :)**

**Warning- In this chapter characters are OOC, moody, and just plain dumb. Forgive them, for I have written them that way.**

**Disclaimer: KH is not currently mine.**

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"I think we're far enough away."

"Really?" Sora panted in response to the redhead's statement. "I was under the impression that fifteen miles wasn't far enough."

"You're exaggerating," Alex said, snorting in response, sitting down on the forest floor.

"And you're infuriating. Are we done with this conversation?" Sora snapped, collapsing. Alex shot him a glare, propping his elbows on his knees and burying his chin in his arms.

"Look, I know I messed up, but that's no reason to get all pissed off at me," Alex said, staring into the woods.

"I'm not pissed off at you," Sora said shortly. "And you did not mess up."

"Yes I did Sora. The only reason Kayla and Logan are back in the camp is because of me," Alex said shortly.

"Ok," Sora said with a sigh, running his hand through his hand. He was really bad at the comforting thing. "First, let's get one thing straight. This was not your fault. You may have made a mistake, but Logan and Kayla could have easily escaped with us."

"Then why didn't they?" Alex shot back.

"They…ah…didn't run fast enough?" Sora said weakly. Alex snorted, scuffing the ground with his shoe. "Alex. Seriously," Sora said, his voice strong. "Stop beating yourself up. Insecurity does not look good on you."

"What are you, a therapist? You're not helping."

"Instead of whining and complaining, we should go back and save them."

"I'm not _whining_."

"Stop focusing your energy on sulking, instead, you should be planning on how to get them out."

"Jeez, if I go back will you shut up?"

"Think positive! If we escaped before-"

"I'M GOING. JESUS CHRIST, CALM DOWN."

"That's the spirit!" Sora chirped happily, following the redhead back the way they came.

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"Okay, this is one of the most stupidest things I've ever done. And that's saying a lot."

"Do I need to give another motivational speech?" Sora snapped back, glaring at the taller man. "Man up already."

"Do you want to be shot at and captured?" Alex retorted, peering through the leaves in the bush they were hiding behind. "There is absolutely no way we can get them out of there without being killed."

Sora suddenly grinned, his eyes glittering. "Dress-up time," he whispered.

"What?" Alex hissed. "Wait, no- ah, shit." The redhead grumbled loudly, cautiously standing up the follow the brunette around the border of the camp. Trotting to catch up with him, he grabbed the shorter boy's collar, dragging him back.

"Augh, Alex, let go!" Sora said loudly, making a strangled noise.

"Where the hell are we going?" Alex snapped, letting go of the shirt.

"Do you want to get them out of there or not?" Sora retorted.

Alex's eyes narrowed. He was really getting tired of the little brat being bossy. "Listen. I'm the one in charge here, not you. You listen to me, follow me, and don't do a thing without asking me first," Alex snarled, his face inches away from the brunette. "Got it memorized?"

"And here I was under the impression that Logan was in charge," Sora said simply. Alex's eyes glittered. Oh yeah. He was definitely tired of the cocky brunette.

"Say that again," he snarled.

"I don't want to fight," Sora said, glaring. "Let's just get Logan and Kayla out of there. And I have a plan, and whether you like it or not, I'm gonna go through with it." Alex sighed, and rubbed his eyes. The action of the last few days was catching up with him, and was too tired to argue.

"Fine," he said, voice dull. "What's your plan?"

Sora grinned, a look that Alex had learned to despise.

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"You really think that the guards will be stupid enough to buy this?"

"Of course. There's got to be hundreds of them in this camp. They're not going to take the time to figure out if we're really one of them or not."

Alex sighed, exasperated, and pulled on the hem of his new white coat he was wearing, just like the rest of the guards in the camp. With his hood pulled up, Sora (who had donned the same outfit) assured him that he was unrecognizable. But he had his doubts.

"Let's just hope they're as stupid as you think they are," the redhead grumbled.

"Don't worry," Sora said reassuringly. "It'll be easy- we find Kayla and Logan, pretend we know what we're doing, help them escape, and run."

"Yeah," Alex said with a snort. "Easy."

"Yup," Sora said, stalking through the camp confidently, Alex by his side. "Easy."

"So, one question about this plan of yours," Alex said, eyeing a guard that walked by warily. "How are we going to help them escape if we have no weapons? Our backpacks are gone, as well as everything we brought, so unless we get our stuff, we won't survive for very long."

"…good point," Sora said thoughtfully. "I guess we'll have to make a detour and look for our things too."

Alex groaned. "You're making this up as we go, aren't you?"

Sora didn't answer. "Where do you think they would put our stuff?"

"Locked away somewhere where we would never find it," Alex responded sulkily.

"…or right there," Sora said, pointing to a pile of bags of weapons sitting outside of a tent.

Alex blinked, surprised, recognizing the weapons. "Considering how obvious that is, I wonder if there are bombs or something in there. Honestly. That's just plain stupid."

"Better for us!" Sora chirped, casually walking over and picking them up. Shoving a few knives in the bags, he tossed one of the backpacks to the redhead.

"And I thought I was impulsive," Alex grumbled, pulling out his knife and masking it in his sleeve. You could never be too careful.

"Only two bags, right?" Sora asked, earning a nod from Alex. "Okay, now we go find Logan and Kayla."

"Yippee," Alex said sarcastically. "I can't wait to be shot at and captured."

"Sora shot him an exasperated look.

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"This is stupid. We'll never find them."

"Would you stop being so negative?"

"Would you stop being so bossy?"

"Know what? Just shut up for a while. After we find them you can complain all you want."

"Great. You're starting to sound like Logan. Just what I need."

The pair continued to argue silently, standing outside of a tent and acting like they belonged there. They had been searching for what seemed like hours, but had still seen so sign of the rest of their group.

"Maybe we should ask someone where they are," Sora said, biting his lip. "We would find them much quicker."

"Yes, that would be completely unsuspicious," Alex snapped back. Sora ignored him, and brightened when he saw another guard walk by. Straightening, he walked over to the other man confidently.

"Excuse me," he said, deepening his voice. "I was told to go guard the prisoners for the next shift, do you know where they are?"

Alex facepalmed.

"Uh…yeah, they're in the boss' tent," the man said, pointing. "But the next shift started a while ago…"

"Thank you, I'll be off now," Sora said hurriedly, grabbing Alex's wrist and dragging him towards where he pointed. The other guard's hooded head turned to watch them go.

"Jesus, could you be any more obvious?" Alex snarled, wrenching his wrist out of the brunette's grip.

"Well I got the info, didn't I?" Sora said in response, eyeing the large tent in front of them. "I think this is it."

"Let me do the talking, okay?" Alex said, pushing in front of the brunette. Sora just shrugged, and followed the redhead into the tent. Sora blinked, his eyes adjusting to the darkness, and saw two figures that he recognized as Kayla and Logan with their wrists and ankles bound together, sitting in the middle of the tent. Three other guards sat around them, and they stood up as Alex and Sora walked in.

"State your purpose," one of them barked, their voice suspicious.

"We were told to come and relieve you for this shift. Boss needs you to guard the new prisoners," Alex said, the sound of his voice causing Logan and Kayla to sit up.

"New prisoners?" another man asked.

Alex scoffed. "Yes, new prisoners. They came with these guys-" he jerked his hand towards Logan and Kayla, "As their backup plan. If they were captured, they were supposed to help them escape."

"When were they caught?" the third man asked.

"Does it matter?" Alex snapped. "Boss wants you, and don't blame me if he decides to punish you just because you were late and didn't listen to me." The three men seemed to consider that for a moment, then they all nodded, saluted Alex, and swiftly walked out of the tent, not even bothering to ask where they were wanted.

Sora breathed out a sigh of relief. ""I guess they are stupider than they look."

"Guys!" a voice piped up from the back of the tent. "You came back for us!"

"I would say something equally as gushy, but right now we really have to get out of here," Alex said, all business. He cut through Kayla's rope, while Sora did the same for Logan. Standing up and rubbing his wrists, Logan shot both Alex and Sora a grateful smile.

"Thanks," he said simply. And that one word was enough to make a huge grin spread over Alex's face.

"Anytime, Blondie," the redhead said, ruffling the short blonde's hair. "Anytime."

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**Oh, the fluff~**

**I realize that Sora and Alex were REALLY OOC in this chapter, and I apologize.**

**Anyways, I would like you all to review, and if not for me or this story, for my new kitty- Mickey! He's absolutely adorable, and he's black with green eyes and one white paw. His favorite thing to do is sleep on my laptop…so apologies if my updates are slow, for I probably can't get him off the computer :)**

**-bee**


	7. Names

**PLEASE READ: So, I understand that the last chapter moved really fast, and they found their stuff and Kayla and Alex WAAYYY too easily, but I promise it won't be like that in any future chapters (beyond this one. sorry, but we're going to have another quick escape from the camp…).**

**I keep forgetting to mention this, so I'll put it here: THANK YOU TO ALL THE PEOPLE WHO REVIEWED, FAVORITED, ETC. THIS STORY. I CANNOT TELL YOU HOW MUCH I APPRECIATE IT, AND I DO HOPE YOU STICK WITH ME UNTIL THIS IS DONE.**

**Also, sorry this was really late- my life is REALLY crazy right now ^^' (and Mickey wouldn't get off my computer…)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own KH**

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"I think that it's time that you let us think of a plan," Kayla said dryly, peeking out of the tent they were currently in.

Logan nodded from his place beside her. "You guys were just plain lucky. There's no way we're going to be able to get out of here just as easily as we did before."

Alex scoffed. "I'm glad you have such faith in us."

"If we got into the camp and into this tent so easy, I'm pretty sure it won't be much harder to get out," Sora piped in.

Kayla nodded. "But we have to move fast- once they realize that there is no meeting, they're going to come straight for us," she said decidedly.

"Any of you have a plan then?" Alex asked dryly. "If we have to move fast we're going to have to come up with something soon."

"I think it would be easiest if-" But Logan was suddenly cut off when the flap of the tent opened, revealing a guard walking in, a knife at his side. Moving first, Alex leaped forward, grabbing the guard before he could move and holding his own weapon at his throat.

"Move and it will be the last thing you do," the redhead hissed. Immediately struggling, the guard strained to get out of his grip.

"Knock him out," Logan said in a bored tone. "We don't need to deal with this right now." Nodding, Alex switched his knife to his other hand and drew his arm back, swiftly colliding the hard grip of the weapon with his head. Sora stared as the man fell down.

"Well?" Alex asked impatiently. "More are going to be coming, so does anyone have a plan?"

Kayla grinned. "Remember the conversation we had when we were first captured…?"

* * *

"You are so fucking crazy," Alex wheezed, his hands on his knees. "RUN? _That's _your plan?"

Kayla shrugged, panting as well. "It worked, didn't it?"

Alex groaned loudly. "One day you are going to be the death of us."

"Yes, we already established that," Logan said, rolling his eyes.

"So…" Sora said awkwardly. "Where to next?"

"Where do you think?" Logan asked, looking at Sora steadily. "We're bringing you to your kingdom." Sora said nothing, just frowned slightly.

"Oh, don't be so melodramatic," Kayla said, rolling her eyes at the blonde. Smiling at the brunette, causing him to blush, Kayla waved her hand out into the woods. "It's time to get back on the road. Honestly, don't worry about the whole prince thing. We'll just worry about getting there first."

"Just don't die," Alex added brightly. "'Cause then we'd be screwed."

"Alex?" Kayla asked innocently, grabbing Sora's hand and leading him away from the redhead and back into the woods.

"Yes?" Alex said, grinning, following behind her, Logan at his heels.

"Shut up."

* * *

By the time they decided to stop and camp for the night, Sora was exhausted. He was pretty sure they had gone in circles all day, and felt like they were moving nowhere. The trees, the bushes, the rocks…they looked all the same.

"Are you sure we're going the right way?" Sora asked dubiously, watching as the trio unpacked their backpacks and took out only what they needed for the night.

Kayla stood up and faced the direction they were heading, holding a compass in one hand. "Yup," she said, putting the small device back in her pocket. "Still going east."

"What's for dinner tonight?" Alex asked, leaning back against his bag.

"You ask that every night," Kayla grumbled in return. "It's always going to be the same- either you go hunting and find us something, or it's another dried package of crap."

Alex rolled over, burying his face in the material of his bag. "I think I'll go with the dried crap," he said, his voice muffled.

Logan sighed, sitting down. "Hey Sora, could you come over here for a second? Kayla and I decided to tell you something," he said, his clear blue eyes piercing. Nervous, Sora stood up. What could they possibly need to tell him? Alex seemed interested as well, sitting up and settling down closer to where Kayla and Logan were sitting.

"What, you guys didn't confide in me?" he asked, pouting mockingly.

Logan rolled his eyes, distractedly watching Kayla preparing a quick meal of bread (which they only had a limited amount of, seeing as it went bad fast) and leftover stew. "It doesn't really need your opinion."

Alex gasped, eyes wide. "You got Kayla pregnant?"

Silence.

Alex squawked, breaking the silence, dodging a rock that Logan had thrown at his head.

"No, you moron!" Logan snapped, Kayla looking amused. "Not even close!"

"Aw, and I thought I was going to be an uncle," Alex said disappointedly.

Sighing, Kayla turned to Sora who had sat down next to her. "Logan and I have decided that we can trust you. Seeing as you helped Alex get us out of that mess at the camp and didn't run away, we figured that you are trustworthy enough to know something," she said. "It's not the most important secret that we have, but we figured since you're going to be stuck with us for a while, we could tell you our real names."

Sora blinked stupidly. "Your…real names? That's it? I thought you were going to tell me this was a huge trick and you were going to kill me," he said uneasily.

Kayla laughed, ignoring the snickering Alex beside her. "No, of course not. We just got tired of having to use fake names," she said reassuringly.

"It was starting to get real old," Logan agreed.

"So…what a_re_ your names?" Sora said, his curiosity getting the better of him.

"Roxas," 'Logan' said.

"Kairi," 'Kayla' said. Sora nodded slowly. Kairi. It was a pretty name.

"Axel," 'Alex' said flippantly.

Sora raised an eyebrow. "Axel? Isn't that a car part?"

Roxas snorted loudly, and Axel frowned, looking irritated. "For your information it is a very bad-ass name," the older redhead said. Roxas rolled his eyes, leaning back. "Hey, at least it's better than Roxas!" Axel snapped at the blonde.

"In what world is Axel a better name than Roxas?" Roxas asked with a grin.

"At least my name isn't an anagram of Sora with an 'x'!" Axel shot back.

Roxas blinked in surprise, and turned to look at the brunette, looking thoughtful. "Huh," he said. "You're right. I never noticed that."

Kairi looked interested as well. "Weird. Hey Axel, is my name an anagram of anyone else's?"

"Yes," Axel said, nodding slowly. "Iraxik. The invisible man over there."

Sora looked impressed. "You can figure that out that quickly?" he asked, interested.

"I'm a man of many talents," Axel muttered, closing his eyes. "Kairi, are you done with dinner yet?"

"If you ask me again I'm going to make you starve," Kairi said in return, not looking up.

Roxas looked amused, stretching out and leaning his head on his bag. "Stop bothering her Axel," he said, placing his hands behind his head, a action that reminded Sora of himself.

"Fine," Axel said, standing up. "I'll go bother you then." Roxas groaned loudly, protesting, but nonetheless let the redhead sit next to him. They sat in silence for a while, Roxas trying to fall asleep, Axel staring into the distance, Kairi making dinner, and Sora watching her. Roxas finally opened his eyes, made an annoyed sound, and shifted to the side, curling up like a cat against Axel's side.

"Well isn't that adorable," Axel said with a smirk.

"Shut up," Roxas said in return, closing his eyes again. "You're warm." Axel said nothing in return, just closed his eyes as well, and gently resting a hand on Roxas' back.

"Aren't they just the cutest thing?" Kairi whispered to Sora, startling the brunette. He nodded slightly, watching them.

"Are they…?"

"A couple? No. But I've tried to convince them before," Kairi said with ease.

"So, you're not bothered by them?" Sora asked hesitantly.

"What, gay guys? Nah. Why? Are you gay?" the redhead asked, looking at Sora.

"N-no!" Sora said loudly, blushing.

"Bi?" Kairi asked again, eyebrows raised.

"No, I'm straight," Sora said uneasily, surprised by her intensity.

"You don't seem very convinced," Kairi said with a grin, turning back to the stew she was heating over the fire she had just made. Sora just frowned.

"I am," he said confidently, making Kairi smile.

"Hey, do you want to go wake up Axel and Roxas? I would really like to let them sleep, but I don't want their dinner to get cold," Kairi said, taking the pot off of the fire. Sora nodded, getting up. For the first time in a few days, he felt at ease and safe.

Little did he know, a figure was lurking in the shadows, watching their every move and planning their capture.

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**Ughhhhh. I really didn't mean to have that cute and fluffy scene and then a mysterious, dangerous one. Heh ^^' But I hoped you liked it! And apologies for the shortness, quick escape from the camp, and slow-moving plot…at least we know what their names are! (I cannot tell you how many times I had to change 'Logan' to 'Roxas'…)  
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**WHOOP. 6 CHAPTERS POSTED (I'm not counting this one) AND 13 REVIEWS (-dies-). C'mon guys, I know there are more of you out there! So please review, I'd appreciate it!**

**-bee**


	8. Club Kingdom

**Hopefully, this will be a faster moving chapter, with more going on. We're going to get a change of scenery at least! XD**

**This chapter is longer- I felt like a lot needed to happen, and I had the whole afternoon to write this out, so enjoy! :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own KH**

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"FINALLY! CIVILIZATION!"

Kairi glared at Axel who had just spoken, shoving her way in front of him. "It's just an old barn," she said dubiously. "I doubt anyone lives there anymore."

"At least it's a sign that we're getting closer," Roxas supported, eyes twinkling. "Not much farther to go until we get to the Club Kingdom."

Sora blinked. "_Club _Kingdom? Why are we going there? I thought we were supposed to get to the Hearts Kingdom."

"Dude, trust me. We all _really _need to get washed up. We all stink," Axel said, squinting into the distance.

"Rest in a real bed would do us good too," Kairi piped in, eyes dreamy. "Oh, what I would give to sleep in a real bed for one night…"

"Well, if you want to sleep so bad we better head off," Roxas said, switching his backpack to his other arm.

"How long until you think we'll get there?" Sora asked, walking beside Kairi.

"A day at the longest. If we go non-stop from here I think we might be able to get there by nightfall," Kairi said.

"And they'll just let us in?" Sora asked suspiciously.

"Hopefully," Roxas butted in. "The Club Kingdom is an ally of the Hearts. Maybe they'll believe us and let us in for a night or two."

"I thought we were in a rush to get Sora to the kingdom," Axel said dryly.

"We are. But I'd rather get Sora there late and healthy rather than early and sick," Roxas said.

"Roxas and I will have to disguise ourselves though," Kairi said, looking uncomfortable.

"Why?" Sora asked, looking confused.

"…long story, but let's just say it would be better that they don't know who we really are," Kairi said, looking at the ground.

Sora frowned. There was definitely something they weren't telling him, and he was going to find out what.

* * *

A few hours later, after leaving the abandoned barn behind them, they finally came upon the outskirts of a small town with farms and cows grazing.

"Wow," Sora said in wonder. "It's like we went back in time. I didn't know that there were places like this anymore."

Axel snorted. "Yup, this is what all the kingdoms are like. In an effort to preserve what the land was like before we polluted it, the kings and queens sent out a degree that cars were banished, and were to be replaced by horses and carriages and all that crap," Axel said.

"People would actually want to live like that?" Sora said, looking amazed.

"A lot of the people that live here like the old ways of living- it's very formal, and there's practically no pollution in any of the kingdoms," Roxas said, eyes scanning over the town.

"History lesson over, let's go," Kairi said irritably.

Roxas laughed. "Someone's eager to get to sleep in a bed aren't they?"

"Yes. Now shut up and get moving, I'm tired and hungry," the redhead snapped in return. Roxas grinned.

"But before we move on we better get our disguises on," the blonde said, slinging his bag on the ground and rummaging through.

"Right," Kairi said with a sigh, doing the same with her bag.

"Wait- what do you mean by disguises?" Sora asked, looking confused. "Do you have wigs or something?"

"Not quite," Roxas said, pulling out a small thin container. "We have contacts to change our eye color, and gel to make our hair look different." Handing Kairi another small container, Roxas opened his own and carefully took out a contact, putting it in. Blinking hard, he looked up and Sora was startled to see him with one blue eye and one green eye.

"Cool, huh?" Axel said with a grin, seeing the brunette's expression. "I personally think he looks better with one contact in, and the other out."

"How do I look?" Kairi interrupted, looking at Sora. Her eyes were light green, a startling shade that made her look beautiful.

"G-great," Sora stuttered.

"Aw, isn't that cute?" Axel said, grinning. "Sora's developed a little stutter for little Kairi here." Much to Sora's horror, Kairi actually _laughed_, and he blushed even more.

"I did not!" the brunette protested.

"Axel, leave him alone," Roxas piped in, rolling his eyes.

"Don't worry Sor, you're secret's save with me," Axel said gleefully. Kairi ignored him, to Sora's immense relief, and she pulled out a small bottle.

"Hair gel," she said, seeing Sora shoot her a confused some into her hand, she ran it through her hair, making it spikier and a darker color. With strands hanging jaggedly across her face and others criss-crossing in the back, Sora could hardly recognize her. Roxas did the same with his hair, flattening in down completely and covering his blue eye with a few strands.

"Wow, I can't recognize you at all," Sora said, watching as Roxas put the finishing touched on his hair. The blonde flashed him a grin, and faced Kairi.

"Ready?" he asked.

"I've been ready for the last few days," she snapped, shouldering her backpack. "Let's go." They proceeded to walk through the town, earning interested stares at the weapons they were holding. Roxas was strict about keeping their weapons out- as long as they looked intimidating and dangerous, no one would question them. It took only an hour to walk through the whole town until they approached the Club Castle.

The Club Castle was the smallest castle in all the kingdoms- with high, pointed towers and intricate black designs weaving their way up the sides, Sora had a hard time imagining that he was in the poorest and smallest kingdom. Axel approached the gate of the castle confidently, not looking at all intimidated by the large, burly guards that stood in front. Shoving a spear in front of him, the guard frowned at the redhead.

"Do you have an appointment with the King or Queen?" he growled. Axel smiled charmingly.

"No, but I do have a young man who knows the Princess. If you would let her know that Logan is here, I'm sure she'd let us in," Axel said smoothly. Sora blinked with surprise. He thought that they were done with using their fake names…although if they had to disguise themselves, they probably wouldn't want to use their real names.

"I thought the King and Queen were going to let us in," Sora hissed to Kairi as Axel spoke to the guard.

"Roxas has a special connection with the Princess," Kairi hissed in return. "They were really close friends when they were younger. In fact, they were engaged for a little while," she added with a grin. Opening his mouth to answer, Sora was interrupted when Axel walked over to them, grinning triumphantly.

"Says he's gonna get a guy to give the message to the Princess," he said. "We're in."

"How do you know she's gonna let us in?" Roxas grumbled crossly. "She might just pretend she doesn't know who I am."

"Knowing Princess Olette, I'm sure she'll let us right in when she hears your name," Axel said, looking thoroughly amused.

"Shut up," Roxas grumbled.

"The Princess has agreed to meet with you in the Dining Hall," the guard said loudly, walking over to them. "This way." They walked into the castle, Roxas looking uneasy. The gates closed shut behind them with a clang, and they ascended the stairs, walking into the grandly decorated hallway.

Axel whistled. "Fancy place."

"Please place all your weapons here," the guard said stiffly, gesturing towards a marble table placed against a wall near a grand door.

Roxas raised an eyebrow. "As an acquaintance of the Princess, you really think I would attack her?" he asked.

The guard said nothing, just waved his hand towards the table again.

Letting out an annoyed noise, Roxas slowly let go of his sword and set it down on the table, along with a couple of throwing knives, a dagger, and a thin knife most likely used for whittling.

Axel did the same, having more long knives and only three daggers, and Kairi set a pile of throwing knives down, glaring at the guard.

"You may enter," the man said, his eyes watching them like a hawk. Surprised that he didn't search them any further, Sora walked behind the trio and into the Dining Hall. A long table ran along the center, and at the end sat a small brown-haired girl, her hair braided up extravagantly up one her head.

"You _are _here!" she cried daintily, springing up and swiftly running over to him. Her steps were small and graceful, and her skirts swished around her ankles. She stopped a few steps away from the blonde, beaming. She turned her green-eyed gaze toward the guard who was standing protectively by the door. "You may leave," she said simply, waving her hand. The guard frowned, but bowed swiftly, leaving the room and shooting them one last glare. As soon as the doors closed, the Princess enveloped Roxas in a hug.

"Hello to you too, Olette," Roxas said uncomfortably, patting her back stiffly, his arms pinned to his side.

"Roxas! I can't believe you came back!" Olette cried, clinging onto him tightly. Frowning, Roxas pushed her off of him.

"Two things; one, don't say my name out loud. My name is _Logan. _And I'm not planning on returning anytime soon. We just need a place to stay. This is Sora, the Prince of Hearts," Roxas said, nodding at the brunette. Olette cast him a disinterested glance, and then turned back to the blonde.

"What do you mean you're not coming back? We were engaged a long time ago, you can't just decide against it now!" she cried.

Roxas ran a hand through his hair, sighing. "Olette, I told you this, I'm _not coming back. _I'm just fine the way I am right now, and this is the last time you will ever see me again, I promise. So don't try to change my mind, because it won't do anything."

"But you were-"

"I _know _what I was," Roxas interrupted, looking angry. "Look, just let us stay for a night or two and we'll be on our way, and we won't bother you again."

"But Roxas…" a snarl reprimanded her for using his name. "I _cared _about you and you just left me?"

"Look, I really don't want to talk about this now. Will you let us stay here for the night or not?" Roxas said, exasperated.

"What he's trying to say is will you please open your doors for us for one night? We are terribly hungry, tired, and dirty. It would be greatly appreciated if you would let us," Kairi said, placing a hand on Roxas' arm.

Olette pursed her lips, thinking. "I will let you stay," she said grandly. "But unless Roxas agrees to stay and agree to our engagement, he cannot." The words were childish, and Roxas seethed with anger.

"Know what? Fine. I sleep out in the fucking _woods _for all I care. Just get it through your head Olette- _I. Am. Never. Coming. Back. _There is nothing that you can say or do that will stop me. So let my friends stay for the night and kick me out to sleep on the streets. _Fine. _But let them stay and give them no trouble, _do you understand me?" _Roxas' eye that wasn't covered by his bangs was glittering with rage, and Axel, Kairi, and Sora were staring at him in shock.

Olette sniffed and lifted her nose in the air. "Alright. But I will never forgive you Roxas."

"And that's fine with me," Roxas snarled back. He turned his back towards the Princess, and stormed out to the hallway. Startled, Kairi called out his name.

"R-Logan, where are you going to stay?" she said anxiously. "If you can't stay here then we shouldn't either…"

"I'll meet you at the front of the castle the day after tomorrow. Don't worry about me. I'll be fine," Roxas said without turning around. Slamming the doors behind him, Sora, Axel, and Kairi turned to look back at Olette.

"Well," she said, smoothing out her dress. "Welcome to Club Castle, I hope you enjoy your stay."

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**Seriously guys, this is like, a record. I whipped this thing out. I also apologize that Olette is OOC…Xion was originally going to be in her place, but then I used her in the Alliance camp, and I had to use another girl…and I chose Olette :)**

**Oh, isn't this interesting? I don't know about you, but I'm excited :):):)**

**Please review, and the next chapter hasn't been started yet, but it shall soon~**

**-bee**


	9. Enjoy Your Stay

**I AM SO SORRY FOR THE DELAY AND THE SHORTNESS OF THIS CHAPTER…updates are most likely going to be coming slower due to the fact that I'm loosing inspiration for this fic fast- the plans I had for this story aren't working very well :/**

**Thanks for any reviews and/or alerts, I'd really appreciate it if you stopped by and left a review too :)**

**Disclaimer: Do not own anything relating to KH**

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"Roxas has quite some guts to stand up to the Princess like that," Axel said an hour after the blonde had left, lounging on Kairi's bed. The other redhead was staring out the window, while Sora sat at the desk in the room, chin in his hands.

"You heard what she said," Kairi said worriedly, looking out the window as if she hoped to catch a glimpse of the blonde himself. "They were engaged a long time ago. They probably were acquaintances, friends at the most, so he probably knew her well enough that he wouldn't get in trouble for arguing with her."

"I would think that the guard would at least get suspicious," Sora added in, boredly tracing invisible patterns on the desk. "All that yelling would probably have alerted someone."

"So there's probably someone tracking Roxas right now to make sure he's not some crazy kidnapper that will return and take away dear Olette," Axel said, rolling over onto his back.

Kairi bit her lip in worry. "Exactly. That's what's bothering me. There's no way they would let anyone that entered the castle just leave without figuring out who they are," she said.

"We're only going to be here for tonight and tomorrow night," Sora offered. "We might as well make the best of it."

Axel clapped a hand on his shoulder, sitting up. "I agree. Think of this as staying in a hotel for a few nights. We're not in a castle with guards at every corner and if you say just one thing rude to the Princess the guards won't hesitate to-"

"Thank you for your inspiring advice," Kairi interrupted. A knock suddenly sounded on the door, startling the trio. Kairi got up and answered the door, meeting a small girl with an armful of sheets.

"The Princess would like to inform you that supper is prepared," she said in a thin voice, abruptly walking away once the message was passed on.

"Well wasn't that rude," Axel said mildly, watching her walk away.

Kairi just shook her head. "You heard her. Let's go down to the dining hall."

* * *

Dinner was, little to say, awkward. They sat at the long table they had first seen when Roxas had argued with Olette, and she seemed to not forget about their conversation. Servers scuttled around ("They are not servants- they are paid for their work and live out of the castle," Princess Olette had said) asking if they wanted more food or a drink, and the Princess turned her nose up at every single one of them.

"So, Sora is it?" the brunette herself asked, looking at Sora, who was picking at his food.

"Uh, yeah," Sora said quietly.

"You are the Prince of Hearts? Have you ever had experience ruling a kingdom? Are you even a direct descendant of the king?" Olette said, leaning forward, making Sora flustered.

"Princess, please let him relax," Kairi said firmly. "He's been through a lot, and I can assure you that he is the right prince, and he is fully qualified to rule a kingdom just as you do."

"…this is very good soup," Axel said awkwardly, breaking the silence. Rolling her eyes, Kairi said nothing and just reached out, squeezing Sora's hand in comfort. He had looked nervous, not touching his food and glancing at the Princess nervously.

"Well, I hope you enjoy your stay," Olette said, standing up. Servers quickly dashed forward and took her dishes away and offered her dessert, which she declined. "I must be going- I have many things to do. You are welcome to eat as much as you want, but please don't leave the castle for safety reasons until tomorrow morning. Good night." With that, the Princess was gone, and they were left in the Dining Hall alone.

"I'm full, what about you?" Axel asked, pushing himself back from the table. Kairi and Sora nodded in agreement, standing up.

"So…should we go back to our rooms?" Sora asked, fidgeting. He felt uncomfortable in the castle, and he had no idea how he was going to be a Prince and live in one for the rest of his life.

"Hah! Are you kidding? The sun hasn't even set yet- I think it's time we went and explored a little," Axel said, grinning.

Kairi frowned. "You heard the Princess- if you go out of the castle, you're probably going to get in a lot of trouble."

Axel just grinned. "I never get caught," he said, waving his hand dismissively. "Sora, wanna come with me?"

The brunette looking uneasy, shooting Kairi a side glance. "Uh…I'm actually really tired…I think I'm going to go to sleep." Kairi smiled and him, nodding in appreciation, while Axel looked crestfallen, muttering something about Roxas would have gone with him. Waving good-bye to the redhead and heading towards his room, Sora walked away from Kairi and Axel.

* * *

About a mile away, Roxas was in a dangerous situation. Storming away from the castle in anger and frustration, he had not paid attention where he was going and was now lost.

Not only was he lost, but he was also stuck in an animal trap.

Thankfully, the trap wasn't the metal, more sturdy ones that most likely would have made him unable to walk ever again. It was a thick, dark colored rope that was lashed tightly around his ankle, and no matter how hard he pulled or sawed with his knife, he could not get free. Snarling in frustration, Roxas again lunged forward, being dragged back again by the sturdy rope.

"How could I be so oblivious?" the blonde groaned aloud, eyeing the trap with distaste. It was one of the simplest and easiest to recognize traps- a circle of rope on the ground. Yet Roxas had missed it and was now trapped, his backpack flung a few yard away from him when he somehow threw it when he fell. It was getting dark quickly, and Roxas had no way of getting his bag with his food and blankets.

Groaning in defeat, Roxas sunk to the ground, curling up and keeping his eyes way open so he could see any enemies come towards him.

* * *

It was two hours after Sora had gone into his room to sleep, and he was pacing in agitation.

He wasn't sure if it was because he was worried for Roxas, Axel, or just the stress getting to him. But whatever it was, he hoped it would end soon, because he couldn't go on very longer like this.

Sighing, he fell backwards onto his bed, staring at the ceiling.

* * *

A few rooms down the hall, Kairi was busy writing in a notebook.

Occasionally checking to make sure her door was closed and still locked, she perched on the end of her bed, her hair falling into her face. Contrary to Axel's belief, it wasn't a diary- it was a day-by-day log book. She wrote down all that had happened, all that they planned to do, and occasionally wrote future notes to herself.

Roxas had warned her that it was a stupid idea to write down everything that they were going to do, in case someone found the book. Then they would be in serious trouble.

But Kairi kept writing- she liked to look back at her accomplishments, her failures, and even the jokes she recorded from Axel. Because one day, she figured, she would stop being a spy and protector and have a family- a family she could share her adventures with.

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**Ugh. It's short. I'm sorry. **

** I was going to include what Axel was doing, but I want to make sure you keep reading, so I saved it for the next chapter XD**

** And look- Kairi does have a soft, girly side :3**

** ALSO: I am now accepting Beta requests! I find editing things sometimes helps my imagination flow, so check out my beta profile and let me know! :)**


	10. Waiting

**Wow…I am SO SO SO sorry I haven't updated in so long. And this chapter is lacking. But I have a reason.**

**I have mono D': Yes, have. I **_**still **_**have it. Yet I'm writing. BE THANKFUL THEE DEAR READERS...  
**

**Without further adieu, I give you chapter 10~ (HEY LOOK I MADE IT TO TEN CHAPTERS XD) Oh, and we almost have twenty reviews! Keep 'em coming!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything relating to KH**

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As Kairi and Sora sat in their respective bedrooms relaxing, Axel was in a quite different situation.

Creeping down the hallway in a suspicious fashion, he didn't expect to find anything of interest. So as he was making his way back to his bedroom, he was shocked to find a large, gold door with intricate designs all up the side. Backtracking a few steps, Axel stood in front of it with his hands on his hips.

"Huh. Interesting," the redhead said aloud. He leaned forward and lightly rapped on the door, waiting for a response. He suddenly felt like hitting himself. What was he going to say if someone opened the door? _Hi, does this fancy decorated golden arched door happen to be a bathroom?_

Thankfully, no one came to the door.

Breathing out a sigh, Axel again resisted smacking himself. Tempted to go back to his room and leave it all behind, he shifted from foot to foot, contemplating what to do. If Roxas was there, he would have smacked the redhead and ordered him to stop dancing around; it looked like he had to go to the bathroom.

Grinning, Axel realized that no, Roxas _wasn't _there, and there was no one to hold him back. Barely containing his curiosity, Axel opened the door and stepped inside.

* * *

A floor above Axel, a guard sat on an uncomfortable wooden chair and contemplated scheduling a meeting. Taking place in the royal meeting room (adequately named, he mused), it would only take a minute or two for the rest of the guards to make it down. They were all efficient enough that when he wanted to have a meeting, every single one of them would show up.

Grunting in affirmation, the guard got up, waving over a servant who was walking by.

"Get the other guards and tell them we're having a meeting," he ordered, making his way to the meeting room on the lower floor.

* * *

Axel wasn't one to be surprised easily. But as he walked into the mysterious room, and saw a fifty-foot long table lined with enough chairs to seat an entire army, he couldn't help but be shocked.

"Why the hell would they need this big of a room if they have such a small kingdom and a small number of guards?" he murmured to himself. Stepping in farther, he closed the doors behind him with a threatening slam.

* * *

Two floors above Axel, Sora let out a groan of frustration, running his hands through his hair. He was still stressed. This whole 'prince' thing was getting to him.

"What am I going to do?" he groaned, putting his head in his hands. He sighed, and turned to look at the wall separating his wall from Kairi's. Maybe she could give him some advice to help him calm down. Nodding, he got up, went into the hallway, and tapped on the redhead's door.

"Who is it?" Kairi called out, a loud thump sounding from inside her room.

"Sora," the brunette answered. "Hey, can we talk?"

The door opened and Kairi looked at Sora, her eyes soft. "Sure, come on in."

* * *

In the woods, Roxas was surrounded.

By what…he had no idea. But he could sense that there was something closing in on him. His senses were on overload, but he could see nothing due to the darkness.

"Damn it," the blonde growled, tugging at the rope around his leg uselessly. The bushes rustled, and Roxas stiffened, his muscles tensing. He wasn't going down without a fight.

"Hello?" a soft voice called out. "Who's there?"

Roxas froze, trying to recognize the voice. As far as he could tell it was no one that he knew. He heard footsteps, and realized the person was coming closer.

"Shitshitshitshit," he hissed, crawling backwards and trying his best to pass unnoticed while making no noise. He must have accomplished that, because the footsteps faded away. Sighing in relief, Roxas relaxed. Now, how to get out of the trap…?

* * *

Kairi sat on the edge of her bed, staring down the brunette in front of her. Sora shifted uneasily, and she sighed loudly.

"Ok Sora, what's up?" the redhead said, raising an eyebrow.

Sora groaned and ran his fingers through his hair. "I-I'm just stressed out all of a sudden. I don't know what to do, I don't know what's going to happen-"

"Sora," Kairi said firmly. "Shut up." Sora looked at her with shock. "Look- we're all nervous and stressed out. Me probably just as much as you. Roxas is off god-knows-where, Axel is wandering around and likely going to get caught and kicked out, and we only have a little bit more time to get you to the Hearts Kingdom." She paused for breath, still meeting Sora's gaze. "You're not the only one who is stressed."

"Kairi, I didn't mean it that way. I'm just- ugh, I was just dragged from my hometown by three strangers, told I'm the Prince of Hearts, and wrenched out on this journey to go to the Hearts Kingdom. And I _still _don't understand why we can't take a train or something…" Sora said, hesitantly sitting down next to her.

The redhead smiled softly at him. "It's alright. I'm sure you'll feel a little better when Axel comes back and we join Roxas again."

"…yeah, I just hope Roxas is okay," Sora said, playing with his hands.

"He's a tough guy. It's Axel that I'm worried about," Kairi said with a knowing smirk.

"Isn't Axel strong too?" Sora asked, confused.

"Oh yeah, definitely. But it's the thinking department I'm worried about." Kairi winked at Sora and he laughed, feeling much more relaxed than he had a few minutes ago. Collapsing back on Kairi's bed, he smiled contentedly.

"Thanks Kairi," he said quietly.

The redhead waved her hand dismissively. "No problem. I cheer up moody Roxas all the time." Silence rung in the bedroom, and Sora closed his eyes, almost falling asleep.

Footsteps pounded down the hallway.

Sora stiffened and sat up, shooting a glance towards the startled Kairi. They both stood up, about to go to the door when a familiar redhead burst through the door.

"Guys," Axel panted, doubling over. "We gotta get out of here."

* * *

**BLEH CLIFFHANGER. Sorry. I keep doing that, don't I? :)**

**Well, good news is the next chapter should be out sooner. SO sorry for the long wait. Hope you can forgive meee~**

**Don't forget to review! Almost at 20 reviews!**


	11. Conquer and Murder

**WOW. Thank you SO much for the reviews on the last chapter! It made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside! **

**And to the two anonymous reviewers:**

_**Artism**_**: Yeah, the castle had that sort of 'creepy vibe' goin on :) (I like your mother's quote!) Ah, yes. Roxas. Poor guy got stuck in a trap then got scared by a girl. I pity him XD **

_**Hazie: **_**Awwww, thank you so much! You have no idea how much that means to me!**

**YES WE MADE IT TO 25 REVIEWS. IM SO PROUD!**

**Disclaimer: Nothing relating to KH belongs to me.**

**

* * *

**

"…give me one good reason why we have to leave," Kairi said, her arms crossed over her chest, glaring defiantly at the redhead.

Axel sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Look, it's a long story, but let's just say I found something out that I probably shouldn't have, and know we're in serious danger-"

"What do you mean serious danger?" Sora asked, looking confused.

"I mean-" Axel snapped irritably, "-that unless we leave, we're going to be killed!"

Silence responded to his accusation.

"Axel, we have more danger of dying outside of the castle than in it." Kairi snapped. "Just go to sleep, honestly. I'm starting to think that you just want to see Roxas again."

Axel bared his teeth. "What the _hell _Kairi? Just _listen _to me!"

Kairi opened her mouth to retort back, but she was interrupted by Sora.

"I think we should hear him out," the brunette said quietly. "Maybe he saw something and really do have to leave."

Kairi growled in frustration, jabbing her finger at the redhead. "I am really sick of all your crap. Get your act together, and stop being such a drama queen. There is absolutely _no _reason we would have to leave under _any _circumstances."

"Kairi!" Sora yelled. "Calm down! Let Axel talk!"

Kairi gritted her teeth, but visibly relaxed, taking a step back from Axel. "Fine," she growled. "Talk."

"Ok," Axel said, taking a deep breath. "I was sneaking around on one of the lower floors, when I came across this huge hall with enough seats to fit a whole army. I was looking around in there, hoping maybe I would find something of interest."

"Greedy," Kairi said, rolling her eyes.

"As I was saying, I was just looking around, when I heard the door open. A few guards walked in, and I quickly hid underneath the table running the entire length of the room. They sat down at the very end seats, and I heard even more footsteps. I looked out from underneath the table, and hundreds of guards were filing into the room, sitting down at the table."

By now, even Kairi looked interested.

"I did the best I could to stay underneath the table without anyone discovering me. And it worked, I guess. They started talking boring shit about the posts around the castle, and I was about to fall asleep, I swear, but then they mentioned the Hearts Kingdom."

"…the _Hearts _Kingdom? Are you sure?" Kairi asked, raising an eyebrow. "What could they possibly have anything to do about the Hearts Kingdom."

"Hah, you'd never guess," Axel said, grinning. "The Club Kingdom is planning to take over the Hearts Kingdom."

* * *

Roxas was starting to get very frustrated.

He had been stuck in the goddamn trap for more hours than he could count, then he was scared like a little girl when someone walked by.

He was getting more and more pathetic by the moment.

Stretching out on the ground, he attempted to reach his backpack, where he kept his sharper, more deadly knives that could be used to saw the rope. But he still couldn't reach.

Reeling back, hissing in pain from the rope cutting into his ankle, Roxas ran his fingers through his hair, frustrated. How the hell would he ever escape?

Scanning the area around him, he looked for something that he could use to reach his backpack. The sun had started to rise an hour before, so there was just enough light for him to finally see. Squinting, he looked over to the far side of the clearing he was in. Was there something there…?

Curious, he made his way over, and was delighted to find a long, thick tree branch that he had passed by the night before. Stretching out, he managed to hook on to the end of it and drag it towards him. Grinning in triumph, he crawled back over towards his backpack, dragging the branch behind him.

Making sure his grip was tight enough on the end, he hefted the thick branch over his shoulder and gently tossed it in the area his bag was laying.

After spending a good few minutes adgusting the branch so it was in the right position, he dragged it along the ground back towards him, the strap of the backpack hooking onto it and being dragged back to Roxas.

"Yes!" Roxas cried, quickly opening his bag and taking out the case containing his sharpest knife. Holding it in a backhand grip, Roxas began to saw at the rough rope, his muscles protesting from the uncomfortable position they were in the night before.

Five minutes later, with a bruised pride and bloody ankles, Roxas was free.

* * *

"That's ridiculous," Kairi said, staring at Axel. "There's no way they could be planning to take over the Hearts Kingdom. They don't have nearly enough manpower to do anything, and the prince is soon to return to the throne," she said, jabbing her thumb at Sora.

"See, that's the other thing," Axel said, gleeful at knowing something that the redhead didn't. "They know that Sora's going to be a major pain to their plan- if he returns, the Hearts Kingdom will be more powerful."

"So?"

"So, they also started to discuss a plan to kill Sora while he's in the castle."

Sora spluttered. "Sorry, what?"

"That's why I said we needed to leave," Axel grumbled, shooting Kairi a glare. "Sora is in danger."

Kairi shook her head. "There's a few things that bother me. One, they don't have enough manpower."

"Yeah well, you'd take that remark right back if you saw the number of soldiers gathered in that meeting room," Axel said.

"How did you get out of the room undetected?" Kairi said in retort.

"Look, does it really matter? You're willing to risk Sora getting killed just so you can figure out how I managed to get out of the meeting room?" Axel snapped. "We have to get out of here, _now, _if we want Sora to make it to the throne alive.

Kairi crossed her arms, pursing her lips.

"Fine," she finally managed.

"Okay, so can we get moving?" Axel asked impatiently.

"Yes, fine, calm down," Kairi muttered, moving around the room to collect her things. "You should go get your stuff too, Sora," she called out to the brunette.

"I'll go with him," Axel offered. "My stuff's already packed, and I want to make sure no one tries to launch a surprise attack again little Sora here."

Sora walked to his room next door, Axel trailing behind him.

"Hey Axel?" he asked hesitantly.

"Yup?"

"What about Roxas?"

Axel seemed to pause for a moment, but he quickly recovered and waved his hand. "Rox will be fine; he's a tough little guy."

"Are we gonna meet up with him outside the castle?" Sora asked, shoving tossing his sweatshirt on.

Axel sighed slightly and looked out the window.

"Hopefully we'll find him quickly so we can get out of here," the redhead said quietly.

* * *

**How's that as a reason to leave? xD**

**Sorry that it's moving so slow, I'm trying to make it go faster!**

**Again, I'm really proud that we have this many reviews, so keep 'em coming so I'll write faster! :D**


	12. Caught Up

**Life comes at me fast. The past few months have finally caught up with me, and the workload is crushing. Updates are going to be slow for a while, and I apologize. But my interest in this story is rekindling, so hopefully I'll update more often.**

**MOVING ON.**

**Disclaimer: Nothing relating to KH belongs to me**

* * *

By the time Sora finally finished packing his things, Kairi had her things gathered and confronted one of the guards. Sora managed to catch part of the conversation as he and Axel approached Kairi.

"-really have to leave, we thank you for your hospitality. Give the Princess our thanks," Kairi said, sounding impatient.

The guard, a large, burly man, looked down at Kairi with a stern look. "It's late- there are many burglars and crooks that wander the streets. You should stay until lunchtime tomorrow morning; that's the safest time."

"Desperate times call for desperate measures," Kairi said flatly, waving Axel and Sora to her side. "Now if you'll excuse us, we'll be on our way." The redhead attempted to shove past the guard, Axel and Sora in tow, but he immediately stepped in her path.

"Sorry Miss, I can't allow that. There are no escorts to bring you over to the next kingdom," the guard said flatly.

"We got here on our own fine enough," Axel grumbled. "We don't need a damn escort."

The guard glared at Axel, and Axel bared his teeth in response.

"You better let us by or Axel here might have to get violent," Kairi said nonchalantly.

The guard paused. "It isn't safe for the Prince. He's vital to the Hearts Kingdom. We wouldn't want anything to happen to him."

Sora gaped at him. He suddenly had the urge to stab him with the nearest pointy object. Only a half hour or so before he was planning his death along with hundreds of other soldiers, and now he's saying he needed to be protected? As if.

"We got him here safe and sound," Axel said pointedly. "And we plan on getting him to the Hearts kingdom the same way. Now get the hell out of the way or I will hurt you."

The guard stubbornly held his ground, much to their annoyance.

"Ok, you asked for it," Kairi said sweetly. Before he could respond, Axel shot forward, clipping the man on the shoulder with the side of his hand on a pressure point. The man immediately dropped to the ground.

"Ok, let's go," Axel said, kicking the man's body to the side. Kairi snatched Sora's wrist and hauled him along the hallway, heading towards the exit of the castle

* * *

Roxas was starting to get irritated.

After finally escaping from the trap, getting out of the forest, and finding his way back to the castle, he realized he came to a dead end.

He had nowhere to go. After acting like a teenage girl and storming out of the castle, he had nowhere to safely lie down and sleep. Axel, Kairi, and Sora weren't planning to leave until the next morning, so he was stuck.

He let out an exasperated noise and sat down not far away from the Club castle entrance. He figured the safest bet was to stay up all night and wait until the rest of the trio exited the castle. It wasn't the most efficient plan ever, and he was most likely to get mugged or something, but it was his only option.

* * *

"…I think we're going in circles."

"No," Kairi said in response to Axel's statement. "I'm pretty sure the exit is down this way."

"I agree with Axel," Sora said hesitantly. "I think we passed this way already."

"It's just down this way, trust me," Kairi said stubbornly.

"It's hard to believe these guys are the poorest and have the smallest kingdom," Axel muttered under his breath.

"They certainly make the best of the space they have," Sora said, eyeing a table of fancy vases as they swiftly walked by.

"Their interior decorating skills are suberb," Axel said brightly. "But they need to use brighter colors. More contrast would make everything look better."

Kairi and Sora shot him a look.

"What?" Axel asked with a grin. "I didn't always want to be a spy."

Kairi rolled her eyes. "Yeah, and I wanted to be a fairy."

"We all had dreams," Axel said dreamily.

"Obviously most of the time they don't come true," Kairi said. "You're not an interior designer and I'm not a fairy."

"Who woulda thought?" Axel said sarcastically.

"Guys," Sora interrupted. "I think I found the exit."

Kairi and Axel turned, following the direction of Sora's finger, and recognized the large golden door that marked the entrance of the castle.

"Sweet!" Axel crowed. "Let's get out of here before we spontaneously get killed."

"That's a pleasant thought," Sora muttered, helping them open the door.

"Hey!" a guard shouted from down the hallway. "You can't leave!"

"Watch us!" Axel yelled, shoving against the heavy door. It slowly creeped open, not nearly fast enough to get them out of the castle before the guard reached them.

"C'mon!" Kairi yelled in frustration, putting all her body weight against it. Sora joined in, but the door didn't seem to move any faster. The door opened a crack, barely enough to let a seven-year-old squeeze through.

"Hey!" the guard repeated, getting closer. Axel shoved again, and let out a noise of relief when the door opened enough to let them through.

"Go!" he yelled, shoving Sora through. Sora grabbed Kairi's wrist and hauled her through after him, with Axel not far behind. Sora squeezed through without trouble, Kairi doing the same, but Axel had a slightly larger frame, not able to go through as effortlessly.

"Axel!" Kairi screeched. "C'mon!"

"I-can't-" Axel hissed, sucking his breath in. Kairi grabbed the one arm that was through the gap and hauled backwards, Sora helping her. On the other side of the door, Axel let out a cry of pain as the guard latched onto his other arm.

"Oh no you don't!" the guard snarled, hauling backwards, causing Axel to yell in pain. An intense and painful game of tug-of-war progressed, neither team gaining the prize of Axel even after ages of pulling and tugging. Axel was in significant pain, but he finally managed to dislodge the man's grip from his arm and fall out towards Sora and Kairi.

"Let's go!" Kairi said, grabbing Axel's arm and tugging frantically. "Other guards will be here soon!"

Axel swore loudly, and hissed in pain. Kairi dropped his arm, an apologetic look on her face. "I'm sorry! But please Axel, we need to get going!"

Axel stood up, his left arm hanging at his side pathetically. "I'm okay," he hissed. "I'm okay."

Sora looked at him worriedly, but led the way out of the courtyard and onto the dirt road. Kairi hovered around Axel's arm, but he waved her off ("You said we needed to get going," he said firmly. "So let's get going."). It was dark, almost morning, and Sora could barely see the road underneath his feet.

"We'll rest as soon as possible," Kairi assured the injured redhead. "Then I'll fix up your arm."

"I think I dislocated my shoulder," Axel said, rolling his shoulder with a grimace of pain. "But I can live." They walked on in silence, Sora leading the way. Leaves rustled around them, and Sora jumped at every rustle.

A figure suddenly emerged from the forest. Sora reeled back in fear, and Kairi pulled out a knife, taking up a protective position in front of Axel.

"Hey guys," a familiar voice said tiredly. "Fancy seeing you here."

"Roxas," Kairi breathed in relief, dropping her knife to the ground and moving forward to wrap him in a hug. "We were so worried."

Roxas smiled, his chin resting on Kairi's shoulder. His eyes were dull with a lack of sleep, and he had scratches all over his body. Spotting Axel with his injured arm, he let out an exaggerated sigh.

"I can't leave you guys alone for one day, can I?" he said with amusement.

Kairi just hugged him tighter, and Axel scratched his head sheepishly with his good hand. Sora smiled, and felt himself relax slightly. Roxas had finally caught up and something was going right for a change.

Things were progressing, slowly but surely.

* * *

**That last sentence seems to be describing the progress of this story xD**

** Sorry guys, I'll get cracking at the next chapter, but no promises. Don't forget to stop by and leave a review!**


	13. Mold

**Jeez…sorry this took me so long. I don't have an excuse, but I swear to you I'm trying my best. Apologies that my chapters are so short, but I'd appreciate it if you'd review :)**

**Disclaimer: KH= not mine**

* * *

"So you're finally back together, sufficiently injured and kicked out of one of the kingdoms for the rest of your lives. What do you plan on doing next?" A hand was held out to Roxas' mouth, as if the speaker was holding a microphone.

Roxas shoved Axel away into a tree. "Shut up asshole."

Axel grinned and almost skipped back to the blonde's side. "C'mon, I'm trying to lighten the mood."

"Listing all of our failures isn't really helping, Axel," Kairi called up to him where she was walking in the back.

"Sort of darkens the mood, really," Sora piped up from next to Kairi.

"Stop ganging up against me," Axel pouted. "I thought we were a team!"

"One that will soon be lacking a certain redhead," Roxas mumbled under his breath. Kairi grinned, roping an arm through Sora's and pulling him to stand closer to Roxas and Axel.

Sora noticed with some surprise that a blush failed to appear when Kairi made contact with his skin. Feeling half relieved, half disappointed, Sora wondered if Kairi just wasn't appealing to him anymore. Sora had never been too sure about his feelings around girls, and Kairi made everything more complicated. One second she was the most beautiful girl in the world, and he blushed just looking at her, and the next she was about as appealing as a sister would be to him.

_Gross, _Sora thought with a grimace. Axel spotted his expression and smiled, slowing down to pat him on the shoulder.

"No worries, Sor," he said brightly. "We'll be at the Hearts Kingdom eventually."

"Emphasis on _eventually," _Roxas said, rolling his eyes. "At the pace we're going, we'll never get there."

"Stop being such a pessimist," Kairi said, playfully hitting Roxas in the shoulder.

"I'm not a pessimist," Roxas protested. "I'm a realist."

Axel let out a bark of laughter at that, and then let out a wheeze of pain, holding his bruised ribs that were injured from squeezing through the door at the castle.

"You okay?" Sora asked worriedly.

"Yeah, just fine," Axel said, shooting him a thumbs-up, bent over with his hands on his knees.

Kairi walked past, giving him a reassuring slap on the back. "Man up, we've still got a ways to go."

Sora looked at him sympathetically, crouching so he could meet the redhead's eyes. "You sure we don't need to stop and rest?"

"No time," Roxas called from up ahead, but Sora ignored him.

"Nah, it's okay kid," Axel said. "I'm tough."

Sora heard Roxas snort. Hearing the blonde, Axel let out a dramatic groan, draping himself over Sora.

"But you're the only one who cares! Everyone else is cruel, inconsiderate, uncaring…"

Sora squawked in protest, trying to shove the redhead off with no avail. Kairi stopped from where she was walking and turned around, her hands on her hips.

"Axel," she called out warningly. "Get off him."

Axel ignored her, and by now Roxas had stopped to watch, amusement written over his features.

"Sora, you're the only one that cares! Carry me, for no one else shall!" Axel cried, latching onto the brunette and almost dragging him to the ground with his weight.

"Seriously Axel, get off!" Sora whined, attempting to pry the redhead's arms off. Axel was having too much fun however, and refused to cooperate.

"Axel!" Kairi yelled, half-angry, half-amused. "You won't get any dinner tonight unless you let him go!"

"What are you, my mother?" Axel yelled back. Kairi huffed and began to stride angrily towards the struggling pair.

"Watch out Axel," Roxas called out, laughing. "Mother Hen is out to get you."

Axel saw Kairi angrily making her way towards him and let out a laugh, twisting Sora around so he was blocking her way from getting to him. "Nooooo, Sora! Save me!"

Sora choked, gripping Axel's arm that had wound itself around his neck. "Leggo!" he choked.

"Axel!" Kairi shrieked.

"Ow…damn Kairi, can you try _not _to pull my damn arm?"

"Language. And it's your fault anyways," Kairi snapped, fingering Axel's arm and trying to figure out how much damage she had inflicted.

Sora rubbed his neck where Axel had desperately latched onto. "It was your fault, you know."

"Yeah sure, it's my fault that Kairi went all ninja on me and practically ripped my arm off, which is already injured, thank you very much," Axel growled. Kairi scoffed in response.

Across from them, Roxas sat on a tree trunk, digging through a backpack determinedly. "Kairi, are you sure there's food in here?"

"Yeah, should be some in the plastic bag in the bottom," Kairi called back, still concentrating on Axel's arm. "Yeah Axel, it's definitely dislocated."

"Thank you Captain Obvious."

"Don't sass me. I'll dislocate your other arm."

"Kairi," Roxas interrupted. "I don't know what standards you set for edible food, but this does not meet mine."

Sora looked over to where Roxas was holding a plastic baggy filled with an unidentifiable green ooze. Sora let out a gagging noise, disgusted even from far away.

Kairi looked over, eyeing the back indifferently. "Looks like water got in there somehow."

Axel looked over as well. "Where'd the food go? All I see is mold."

"That is the food," Kairi returned. Roxas eyed the bag, holding it away from his body with disgust.

"I would throw that away as soon as possible," Kairi advised. "Who knows, the mold might be poisonous. And soaked through the bag."

Roxas let out a noise of fear, and tossed the bag away from him. It landed at Sora's feet, and he let out a squeal, backing away like it was a bomb. He eyed it with fear, and then whipped his head up at Roxas, glaring fiercely.

"Dude, don't throw it at me!"

"Well, where else was I supposed to put it?"

Sora let out a noise of disbelief, waving his arms around. "Anywhere else in this forest! It's huge! You could find somewhere else other than my general direction!"

"There's nowhere else where I would get that reaction," Roxas said innocently, blinking at Sora with owlish eyes.

Sora spluttered, glaring. Determined to get revenge, he hesitantly stuck a leg out towards the bag. Hoping his sneakers wouldn't get contaminated, he slowly nudged the bag…

…and kicked it at Roxas' face.

Roxas yelled, not managing to doge it in time, and getting hit full-force in the face. He fell over backwards, off of the tree trunk, viciously flinging the bag away from his face.

"Sora!" he yelled. "You asshole, come back here!"

Kairi and Axel burst into laughter, laughing even harder when Roxas jumped up, running after the brunette. Giggling hysterically, Sora evaded Roxas' attempts to capture him, dashing around their campsite with a grin on his face.

"Ok boys, calm down," Kairi said, smiling. "We have to find something to eat."

Sora obediently stopped, panting, but Roxas didn't give up. Lunging forward, he tackled Sora, grabbing him around the waist and slamming them both into the ground. Sora shrieked, and Roxas just laughed in triumph.

Spitting out a mouthful of dirt, Sora rolled over and glared at the blonde who was half laying on top of him. "Jerk," he grumbled. Roxas smiled in return, looking pleased.

"Ok, you've had your fun. Now come help me find food, Axel is somewhat of an invalid at this point," Kairi called.

Roxas got off of Sora, offered his hand, and helped the brunette stand up. They brushed the dirt off of themselves, and then headed over to where Kairi was waiting.

"Oh my lord," a voice suddenly burst from the forest. "What are you doing here?"

Kairi spun around, her face paling as she recognized the voice. "N-Naminé?"

* * *

**I was going to continue, but I would never find a place to stop. This is the best ending I could do, and I hope it's sufficient. Let me know by dropping by and leaving a review!**


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